The Vampire Saga Midnight Blood
by ParamoreRockskk7
Summary: Liam, a young waiter in a hotel, has come to realise that luck isn't his thing. When Sofia comes in to his live, he thinks she could be the one... until he finds strange secrets lurking in her shadows
1. Chapter 1 Hotels

I had been working all day, in the restaurant where I worked as a waiter. It was a good job at eighteen, and it paid bills and whatnot. The beads of sweat rested on my forehead, and I brushed them away quickly with the back of my hand. Lots of people must have found it unattractive. The restaurant was busy tonight. It was an elegant room and was one of the many attractions that drew you to _The Silent Ice _Hotel. The air was filled with the smell of fresh food and the sound of many people chatting casually. I walked across the room to a table in my area. There was a man and a woman sitting beside the window where the light from the streetlights outside poured in through the window. I looked at them with a smile and put down their drinks- a red wine and a pint of beer- and held the tray by my chest.

"Is there anything else I can help you with?" I asked, still keeping my toothpaste advert smile.

"No thank you," the man said waving his hand to me, telling me to go. He kept staring at his companion, and she stared back, smiling.

"ok, you're starter will just be coming." I felt like blowing a raspberry and running away, but casually I walked away, tray in hand. I sat it on the bar, slamming it a bit too hard, and sighing at the same time. Lara, My boss, looked at me and laughed whilst she was shining a glass.

"Not getting enough attention," she raised her eyebrows.

"No, I just wish they would give me some respect, instead of treating me like a piece of-"

"No such language in this restaurant!" Lara waved her hand at me, and I laughed a bit. This was going to be an exhausting night.

I already felt tired, from the heat of the day. It usually was raining most days, the sun never showing its face. But today it seemed to be blazing its broad smile. This was most unusual, considering this was September now. But now it was dark, and outside the city still bustled with many people, shops closing up for yet another day, the traffic bustling.

Through the archway of the restaurant I saw the lobby and its guests. The front desk was quiet, a small woman sitting there writing on some papers. Her name was Portia, an old aged woman who could be stern at some times, her brow permanently moulded in to a scowl. She wasn't the nicest person to greet you to you hotel.

Just then as my eyes were wondering the lobby, the doorman opened the front doors. A young woman who looked around my age came through the door, smiling at the doorman as she went past him. She stopped for a minute, looking around the large place. I couldn't get a proper look at her, but I could see her hair was a dark brunette, styled in to curls that hung down just past her shoulders. She didn't waist too much time on deciding where to go, so she took to her left- towards the restaurant. She got seated in my area- lucky for me- and I slowly walked up to her. She didn't look at me at first as she was intensely reading the menu. Her eyes risen from the menu and she gave me a smile that complemented her beauty. I couldn't help but stare at her sapphire blue eyes. There was a short silence and when I eventually realised I snap my head back to my notepad I used for taking orders.

"Hello, are you ready to order?" I asked confidently. She kept on smiling and looking down at the menu she gripped in her hand.

"Oh, I don't know, I think I'll just have a glass of water," she said nodding her head. I was about to write it down, and then I stopped realising she hadn't ordered anything to eat.

"Are you sure?" I asked whilst raising my eyebrows, "Don't you want anything to eat?" She looked up at me again with the same beautiful smile and put her chin to her pale fist.

"No thank you." I tried to give her my best smile and started to walk away without even taking the order down on my notepad as it was easy enough for me to remember. I casually walked back to Lara, who was cleaning another glass until perfection had occurred. I walked in to the bar and got some cool bottled water out of the mini fridge behind the bar. The water was so cold I could see the droplets of condensation appear instantly on the bottle. As I was doing this I complained to Lara. "Who goes in to a restaurant and doesn't order anything to eat?" I asked, raising my shoulders in a sign of confusion. Lara just laughed at me. I was glad she found it funny.

"Maybe someone like her?" She suggested. I didn't even consider the thought as I knew she was trying to point out the obvious. As I poured the water in to a glass with ice, I gave Lara the ha-ha look, and she smiled back graciously.

"Are you sure I can't get you anything else?" I asked as I sat down the water in front of her. She shook her head as she watched the water, stirring it with her finger.

"Why don't you sit down and we can have a chat?" she indicated the seat across from her. I bit my lip as I struggled to answer the question. _Ignore your boss and sit with the beautiful creature, or walk away and be a good waiter and get better tips? Oooh hard one._

"Erm ... I can't. See my boss might give me a wallop on the ear and I really can't afford to lose this job." I wasn't exactly coming across straight. I mean I could have done without this job financially; my parents were the proud owners of several famous art galleries in town, the finest ones as well. Many people had come and visited the galleries. No that was not the problem. The problem was that my mother had decided that big things had to be coming my way. She wanted me to keep this job because of the things it would lead me on to. I didn't even know if she was trying to kid herself, but I did know that my parents gave me the support I needed for my future, a vital key to keeping my head above the surface, which my mother threatened to take away if I lost this job.

The young woman looked at me, pouting at her best. I couldn't resist smiling. Lara was watching me when I turned round to look for her. She twitched her head towards the woman beside me and showed with her fingers I had two minutes. I nodded at her in appreciation, and sat across from the woman. She started grinning, still twirling her finger around the water.

"Hi, I'm Liam," I said holding my hand out to shake hers. She didn't shake my hand but she nodded to me. I put my hand back down, feeling like a fool.

"Of course, Liam the waiter," she said as though she was trying to remember the name of an old friend, and I had just reminded her. "I'm Sofia."

"So you look young, do you go to college or school somewhere near here?"

"Um, yeah I have just moved here. I'm starting at the college of art and drama." I leaned forward in surprise.

"Swinton's? Me too." She didn't look surprised at all, but she did raise her eyebrows to show she was being surprised, or trying to be.

"Yeah my parents bought this hotel actually, that's why I'm in here. Just checking out my new home." She laughed, and I laughed too, thinking she wasn't being serious, but then I realised she was.

"Seriously?" I asked to confirm.

"Yes, sadly. Living in a hotel isn't exactly my kind of 'happy home'." She stared at the high ceiling in the restaurant. Before I could ask her anymore, I heard Lara call my name from behind me at the bar. I waved my hand at her to show I was just coming.

"So, I'll be seeing a lot more of you?" I asked, feeling as if I was a five year old.

"Yeah, I suppose you will," she gave what seemed to be a flirtatious smile. She got up and walked away. I was about to call her back and tell her she hadn't paid for her water – which she hadn't drunk – until I realised there was money on the table, a hefty tip with it. I grinned like a Cheshire cat, almost too happily.

That night I got off work I stumbled out in to the cool air. It was a cold winter's night, and the air was crisp and alert. The city lazily passed me by, the cars stopping and going. Stopping and going. I shrugged on my coat as I stood on the step of the hotel, and tied my black and gray striped scarf around my neck. The hotel was dulling down now, only a light on in reception, and none in the restaurant. The room that was alive for the past few hours had turned in to a tidy but inanimate graveyard. I started walking down the street; it still was active, despite the time, which was around eleven at night. The taxi's passed gently, none had stopped near me, and besides, my flat wasn't that far away.

"Tired chief?" someone called to me from behind. I quickly turned, at first not knowing if it was me or someone else the deep male voice was calling. But because I knew the voice, I knew it was me. My old school friend and his girlfriend were walking up to me; they had been together since high school. I couldn't imagine having a long distance relationship, but I guess they were back together. Reunited. I smiled at them, gave them a small wave and gave Jared a manly hug, as we so called them. I was so pleased to see them, because I hadn't seen him in years, and he had been living in Vancouver for so long when his family had moved away. I hardly recognized him. His hair that was once mid length was now cut short. His teeth were still perfectly white, which I was always jealous about, and he had stubble.

"Hey Jay, how are you? Tess." I nodded at her politely.

"Hey bro, I'm good thanks. What about you?"

"Yeah, I'm fantastic. What are you doing in London? I thought you were in Vancouver?" He smiled at me then looked at Tess lovingly.

"Well, Tess and I are getting married!" he said enthusiastically as he grinned. I pretended to put on a shocked face, although, to be honest, I wasn't that shocked. It was going to happen sometime. Tess held her hand out to me to show the diamond ring that was placed on her finger. I inspected it closely before hugging them both.

"That's great you guys."

"Yeah, so Tess wanted to live together, so I moved back here." He gave her a tight hug. Ugh, it made me sick to watch that. I wasn't in to the whole romance idea. The thought of an ordinary relationship bored me to death. I wanted something more out of life.

I step on the other foot, shifting my weight. The night was getting quieter.

"So where do you live?" I asked, breaking up their loving huge.

"Just around the corner from your flat. That old art studio." I yawned and then quickly looked at my watch.

"So, I'll be seeing you around?" I asked, making a gesture with my hands for the 'around' part.

"Yeah. It's great being back."

"Yeah. Good to have you back." I gave them a meager wave, and turned around to go back to my apartment after a hard day's work.

When I got inside the flat, a rush of cold air met me. I tried to find my way in the darkness of the hall, looking for the light. I felt something moving towards me, a barking noise came with it.

"Riley, shut up boy! It's me! Don't wake the damn neighbours," I cursed as I stumbled towards the light, trying not to trip over my big golden retriever.

When I finally managed to get to the light switch (that being a mission and a half) I walked through the small hallway in to my apartment.

It was a fairly regular sized apartment. There was a small hallway, which had two doors. One of the doors led to a pristine white and ocean blue bathroom, and another led to a small coat closet, at which I hung my coat in. The hall opened up in to one large sized room. It had its living room on the right half of it, the furniture spread in to a casual design. The kitchen was on the left, a breakfast bar splitting it from the living room. There was a winding staircase that led up to a single bedroom. It was open to the rest of the house, only rails to make sure you didn't fall. No walls to give it some privacy. My apartment looked more like a show room than a practical living area. I didn't feel like staying up much. I gave Riley his food, which he consumed very quickly. I brushed my teeth and washed my face, letting Riley outside for the toilet. He came scampering back in, running to his bed in the kitchen. I went up to my bedroom and got changed out of my work clothes. The bed felt so nice against my russet skin. As soon as I had hit the bed, I fell almost instantly asleep.


	2. Chapter 2 Did I See A Zombie?

The next day I got up bright and early, not by choice because I would much rather continue sleeping, but I had certain chores of my own to perform. The sun was seeping through the fabric of the duck egg blue curtains, its heavy beam twirling on the walls of my apartment. I yawned and stretched, trying to get awake for another day at work, something that I was kind of looking forward to because of the beautiful Sofia that I saw last night, and I hoped to see more of her quite soon, so I had a small grin thinking about it. Though I didn't have much time to think about today's events as I had to get dressed and get working. I got out of bed after fifteen minutes of being awake and opened the curtains, letting the light from the sun fully soak in my apartment. I felt warm as it radiated through me, the best of it staying inside me to keep me warm for the day.

The usual routine occurred on the weekdays, mostly the days when I was working, and as I thought about it, I had noticed that the routine had formed by itself, molding its way in to my life, and I had accepted it. I would get up, after a few minutes of lying in bed awake. I would have some cereal, or toast, depending on how hungry I was, because it usually depended on what I was in the mood for, I never really liked to have breakfast in the morning, but I tried to eat something, because I remember my grandma telling me it was important. Then, after dwelling in conversation with the half awake Riley, I went for a shower in the almost too clean bathroom. The hot water felt good on me, and I loved a shower in the morning, because it made me feel cleaner throughout the day, than having a shower at night, and plus by the time I got home from work I was too tired to even care what I looked or smelled like, I wanted to go to bed. I got dressed and ruffled my dark hair in to a casual look, also remembering to feed Riley as he gave me an adoring look that basically said 'feed me', and I knew that even if I forgot to feed him that he would remind me sure enough.

"Come on boy, we'll take you for a walk." Riley looked up from his food and barked loudly, panting madly, and I could tell he was getting excited about his walk, as he always did. He chomped down on his food even quicker, rearing to go. I put his lead on and led him in to the streets, which had now got busier from last night.

It was the morning rush, which I was a part of sometimes when I was late for work. Many men and woman in business suits and what not, walked at a steady but firm pace down the street sidewalks. They strutted with their suitcases in one hand, mobile phone in the other, looking too professional. Some used their cars to travel outside town, where there would be bigger businesses and firms. I walked down the street in the same confidence they had, but I soon felt very tired at trying to be as confident as they looked, and found myself soon shying away in to the pavement side. Riley barked at some people on their way past me, trying to get near them so he could give them a loving hug, but I soon pulled him back in a tight grip of his lead. They didn't take any notice to him, but he didn't seem to care (or notice). We went to the park that was not too far from my flat. Riley had great fun in chasing ducks and whenever he tried to roll in mud, I caught him quickly enough before he could make a mess, which would be later trailed in to the flat. I sat on one of the benches soon as I had played with Riley a bit. He came and sat on the bench too, jumping up beside me and panting, looking out over the small pond that was in the middle of the park. I looked up at the sky, and it looked a deep blue, looking as if it was going to be a warm day, though I wasn't feeling too warm right then. There were no clouds in the sky, so I couldn't gaze at them and trace the patterns with my finger as I usually did. Everything seemed much more peaceful in the morning. I heard a few birds chirp in the trees, their sounds ringing out to each other, trying to connect with each other. I could even hear the trickle of water running from somewhere over the other side of the park. There weren't many people in the park on that morning. I would usually see a couple of dog walkers or morning joggers with their protein drink in hand as they sauntered along the path. I wondered if any of them had noticed me there, sitting on the bench, as I had closely seen them walking or running by, but I guessed not, they never even seemed to look over at me. I was like an invisible man.

I ran around the corner and in to the hotel, looking a bit untidy as I did. This wasn't a usual occurrence in my agenda, but I was late. Extremely late. I wasn't normally someone who made it a regular thing to be over my arrival time for work, except for the odd occasion where I would forget to set my alarm, or just run out of time doing housework in the morning. But when I was late, Lara decided to call me aside for a five minute talk on why not to be late, most of it being about how I couldn't afford to lose the job, how it was important for me to cling on to it with my life. Lara knew my parents, Bart and Amanda Carter, since I had been about twelve, or maybe younger, but I wasn't too sure as I never seemed to listen in on my parents conversations on the phone, or their life in fact. I was very much just a child who was only interested in what they were doing, because I was never much interactive with other people growing up. My mother was an interior designer and she loved nothing more than making an old, dusty house in to a warm, colourful home with bright and bold colours that she helped her clients choose with the large catalogues in her possession. Although my mother was in her forties, she had hip and trendy styles that appealed to a wide range of ages, even to kids, which was a good thing if she was redesigning a home for a family. My mum had done my apartment when I moved in to it, and that's why it looked more like a showroom because she would of want people to marvel at her work, more than make it comfy when someone came in to my apartment.

Lara rung my mum up one day to ask her to design her living room after finding her number in a supermarket on one of the little business cards, and my mother was only too happy to help. When Lara had seen what a job my mum had done on her living room (which is still the same today, the last time she had told me anyway) she told my mother about her restaurant in The Silent Ice Hotel, and together they planned a new design for the restaurant. The high walls were a blood red, the colour stretching out to the four corners of the room, and the carpets matched as well, which led out of the arch in to the lobby. My mum had certainly made the restaurant look more modern and stylish than it was before.

I sighed as Lara finished her speech, that she had droned on about whilst I ignored her rudely, even though if she asked me to repeat what she said, I could because it was the same speech each time I was late. "Are you finished?" I said bluntly, and a little bit impertinent. I quickly looked down to the floor to distract me from Lara's glare, which I could feel burning in to me as I tried to focus on something else.

"You know I don't think you really take this seriously do you?"

"No, no!" I said in a rush, changing my attitude as soon as I heard those threatening words. "I do, it's just I feel sometimes like this job is blackmail to me." Lara rubbed my shoulder in calm, circular motions, the 'I understand' comforting, her mood now changing in to a more friendly kind, being the good boss I knew she was. I looked up at her. Her hair seemed to glisten in the early light but the stress was showing its effects as her face showed slight wrinkles, but with her stressed occupation, who wouldn't be?

"You've got tables to serve," she encouraged as she pointed to the tables in my area, and I put on a smile as I didn't want to complain about the job that we had just discussed, it would only fuel Lara's stress even more.

It was quiet on that wintery day, the cold air leaving most people to be at home with a nice cup of soup, but that was to be expected. It wasn't a usual waiter's job, as it was quieter than other restaurants, and by other restaurants I meant the restaurants that weren't attached to a hotel. Sure there were busy days, the days where I wouldn't even have time to think about what I was doing, who I was serving. Some people who didn't even stay here came to eat at this 4 star class restaurant. Some were just business men and women who came in to settle deals over lunch; others were romantic couples, especially on Valentines Day, where many would ask the proposal of their other half on that particular day, and the restaurant would go in to a crowd of cheers as they said yes, as there was almost never a no, and if there was, there was that gathering of silence as people continued to slurp delicately on their starters, main courses and desserts.

By the time it was lunch, I was almost shivering with the cold, feeling it especially in my feet and my hands. I had put two pairs of socks on that morning, hoping they would get warmer, with no luck, but I wasn't allowed to wear gloves in the restaurant, so the only way I was going to keep my hands warm were by rubbing them together. I put on a jumper that was black, to match my uniform to see if it would help me to gain heat, and I tried not to fluster whilst putting it on.

"Isn't there supposed to be heating in this building?" I asked sarcastically to the waitress that I worked with sometimes. She was called Lily. Her name matched her pale but bright face and her dainty smile. Her hair was pulled back in to a ponytail, the most common hairstyle for Lily and she laughed at me, her eyes shying away from my own.

"Oh, the heating is on. It's pretty warm in here. I don't think Lara would like it if her customers were freezing to death." I looked around the room steadily, my focus becoming more intent on the people around me. I noticed most people only wore a shirt or blouse in the restaurant, whilst I stood with a jumper that made me look like an Eskimo. I saw that some people looked at me, talking about how strange I looked, and I didn't really bother to do anything about it, because they were right, I did look weird. I shook my head trying to figure out why I was so cold, but I didn't ponder on it for too long, as I knew I had more work to be getting on with.

"I must be coming down with something," I said to Lily, shaking my head and laughing a bit. Before I could walk away, Lily grabbed me on my arm, only touching the edges of my jumper so she didn't grab me too hard. God bless her, she had the softest of clutches.

"Erm ... Lara said for me to tell you that you were wanted to take something up to room 504." She looked at me in the eyes, and I could tell that she was serious because her smile was no longer visible. I hesitated for a moment, wondering why I was asked to do a job that wasn't mine to do.

"Why have I to do it? It's not my job." I sounded a bit arrogant when I said that, but it wasn't usual that I was asked to do something specifically by the guests. I wasn't something special, or that I was aware of. Hey, maybe I was, but I didn't know of anyone who was staying at the hotel who knew me.

"I don't know. It's _her _that requested you," Lily spoke quietly, as though this person she was talking about was part of something dark. I suddenly realised by _her _she meant _Sofia_, the daughter of Mr and Mrs Smith, who were the new owners of this hotel. I laughed a bit at Lily's perception of Sofia, as last night I had been getting along fine with her. I straightened up and smiled, and Lily, gave a quick nervous smile and walked away quickly. I felt honoured but inquisitive at the same time. Why would Sofia want _me_ to bring whatever she had ordered? Maybe she wanted to be friends after our talk last night. Or even more? I got too excited of that thought. Why would she want to be with someone like me? I was just ordinary, and although I might be in the same financial situation as her, I felt I wasn't exactly up to her standards. I went and found Lara at the bar, to inquire about my new task.

"Lara, why am I to take an order upstairs?" I asked as I rested my hands on the bar. Lara walked in behind the bar and shrugged her shoulders.

"We just aim to please."

_What a lame explanation _I thought, but refrained myself from saying it, as it would only get me in to more trouble than I had already been in to. Lara handed me a tray with something on it. It was covered by a big metal lid and the warm metal felt nice on my cool hands, I was about to take the lid off to see what it was, being the curious person that I was, but Lara quickly snapped the lid back down with both her hands. She looked so worried I almost didn't recognise her. "Whatever you do, you do not open the lid, ok?" she asked me breathless as she looked up at me, still crouched near the tray. Her eyes were wide and dangerous, and the moved quickly from side to side, looking at each of my eyes carefully. I was almost shocked by her behaviour. Although as I looked around, I saw that no one around had noticed it.

"Ok. Don't look at any of the Smith's orders." I was a bit scared by her attitude towards it, but I guessed that there must have been a good reason for her actions. She nodded her head scarily and I quickly snatched the tray and started towards the elevator in the lobby. I didn't like people acting strangely, especially Lara, but this was my job, and I did not question what I had been ordered to do.

The elevator was as cool as the restaurant, the air seeping in from the vents. I pressed a button on the side, and the doors closed gradually. With a steady bump, the elevator slowly went up. I looked at one of the mirrored walls whilst I was going up. I did look rather a mess. My hair was ruffled as though I had been dragged through bushes. My eyes had slight circles around them, making me look like one of the dead. I tried to sort my hair, but I had no success. Maybe I was getting ill.

When the doors opened, I quickly stepped out to the corridor. It was extremely quiet, only the faint sound of humming coming from the lights. I looked around for room 504. It was the first time I had done this, and I was completely lost. I didn't know my way around there because I had never really been asked to deliver for guests. I tried my luck and started to go right. The hall was slightly dark; the carpets were the same colour as the ones in the restaurant and the cleaners were good here, as not a bit of the carpet looked stained or worn. Suddenly, from around the corner, appeared a man. He was quite a tall man; he was wearing a business suit. His sandy blonde hair was combed to the side; his eyes looked very large and spaced out. Something was off about him. In fact, there was quite a lot off about him.

He looked dazed and hypnotized. He didn't even acknowledge me, but instead just kept looking straight forward in a trance. He covered his neck with his hand, and his skin was a pale pink, almost white. "Excuse me; do you know where room 504 is?" I asked uncertain that I should actually be asking someone who looked like a psychopath, but I continued to question, as he was the only one in the hall, and I honestly couldn't be bothered to search around for Sofia's room. He didn't look at me, but pointed a long bony finger towards the corner from which he just came from. I looked at the corner and then turned back to him as he walked slowly past me. "Are you alright?" I asked politely focusing on his pale skin on his face and his wide eye, "You look like you've seen a ghost or something?" The man grunted a mere groan and then nodded. I wasn't too sure whether he was nodding at the ghost part or the alright part. I watched him slowly stumble away and I didn't move until he was out of sight, then I continued towards Sofia's room, uncertain of what I had just witnessed. Things were getting _strange. _I didn't like how things were going at all.

When I reached her room I rapped my knuckles lightly on the door. I waited a few seconds as I heard a rumble from inside, as though someone had fell, and I raised my body, slightly alarmed. Then Sofia appeared at the door, only slightly opening the door and wiping something from her mouth with the sleeve of her jumper. She looked pleased to see me as she grinned instantly when she saw my face. It made me feel warm inside to see a nice familiar face after what had just happened as it was some reassurance of reality. I grinned back, trying to make it look as real as possible. She looked a bit of a mess, like she had had a lazy day sitting inside doing nothing. At least we didn't look too different.

"Got your mystery delivery," I said, holding the tray out towards her, trying to make a joke out of the scenario.

"Ah, thank you." She took the tray and sat it on a table beside the door in her room. The part of her room I could see was slightly messy. I could see a duvet laying on the floor and some pillows. I didn't even want to question. "So, how are you, Liam the waiter?" She leaned against the door casually, acting slightly odd, but I hadn't knowing her enough to tell whether it was a regular occurrence or something unusual. I stuttered and then froze, realising something I hadn't before. Had that man come from _her_ room? I was frightened at how dazed and terrified he looked, and he had come from this direction. The thought did look bad and I gave a quick look at Sofia and suddenly saw how ravenous and demon-like she looked. I turned away quickly.

"I have to get back to work," I said as I walked away, trying not to sound like a scaredy-cat. As I stumbled down the hallway, I couldn't help but think I had been just a little bit rude.

I was freaked. In fact, I was more than freaked. The hall from which I came from was now empty. The man who I saw earlier, the dazed, zombie guy, was out of sight, but sadly not out of mind. I needed to get off of this floor. I desperately poked any button to get me to the ground floor, and before I knew it, I was back in the restaurant, looking pale and out of breath. Lara looked at me with a laugh, not knowing of how freaked I actually was of the situation.

"Oh, someone looks out of breath, been having a good time?" At least I knew now Lara was never ashamed to talk about sex in public, especially to teenagers. I gave her a daring look and then slumped on to a bar stool, my hands shaking wildly. Lara studied me closely, her smile fading away and replaced by a serious glare and then she put her hand over mine in an attempt to comfort me. "Are you okay? What happened?" I shook my head and tried to act normal as I knew eyes were starting to grow on me. Lara instantly became very serious and she pulled me in the direction of the door and I didn't have a choice whether I wanted to talk about it or not.

"What?"

"We're going outside for some fresh air, and by the looks of you, you need it." I didn't object, mainly because I didn't have the strength. When we got outside, Lara pulled out a cigarette and lit it. She offered me one, but I refused as I didn't smoke. This so far, wasn't helping me, because now I was even colder than before. Lara took a few puffs of her cigarette and then let out a small sigh. "The Smith's, their different from you or me," she began, looking about the partly littered alley. "I know it's a hard thing to live with, but we just have to accept who or what they are."

"And what are they exactly," I said that a bit too sharp, but Lara knew I wasn't angry at her. I was surprised that Lara knew anything about the Smith's, but after all she was one of the main people who were involved with the hotel, so I guessed she must have had some sort of meeting with them. She shrugged her shoulders and smoked some more and there was a long pause between us whilst she breathed in the smoke.

"Who knows? I've been trying to find that out for years. Even before they were here, many waiters and waitresses had to go up to that room, and some of them even quit after it. One day, for a laugh, I opened the lid off one of the trays to see what was in it." Her face went pale then and she shook her head. I didn't know if I wanted to ask the question that was on my mind, but it was just too tempting.

"What was in it?"

"A dead cat. It lay on the dish lying in its own blood." I almost vomited, and had to turn away and cover my mouth just in case. I was glad now that I hadn't opened the dish earlier.

"That's sick! Why would someone do that?"

"I have no idea. Psychopaths maybe? Whatever their reason I'm pretty sure it's not human."

"so do you think the previous owners were the same _thing _as the Smith's if people had to go up to that room before?" She just looked down and nodded silently. "Wait," I turned to her quickly, "why haven't you left this job yet then?"

"Because, I was too scared to. Plus, this job was my life. Would you give up on something you worked your whole life for, just because you saw a dead cat?" I was about to say yes, but Lara didn't want to be argued with, so I let it slip back. I shook my head in response.

"So what? Do you think they are something other than human, like some other life form?" I tried not to giggle at such a ridiculous question I had asked. Lara didn't laugh.

"Maybe." My face went serious, and I felt fear building up in my stomach. "Look, I've told you too much already. Just ignore the Smith's and do your job. That way, we might get through this nightmare we all live in." Lara stubbed her cigarette on the wall and started to walk back inside.

"Lara," I called her back. "I saw a man up their today. He was pale and covering his neck. He looked deranged." She didn't answer, but stopped and nodded her head to let me know she had acknowledged me. Maybe that was something to do with them too.


	3. Chapter 3 Pure

That night when I got home, I decided to stay in and watch T.V to try and get my mind off of things. Most of the channels were boring, and I couldn't concentrate on them, because of Riley snoring loudly on my lap. I looked at my watch and noticed it was only after seven. There was a silence as I turned off the T.V and then there was a buzz from the apartment phone. I jumped suddenly, scared of what it was, _who _it was. For what felt like a long time, I sat on the couch froze. Once I had finally had the courage to move, I walked over to the apartment phone and answered it. Suddenly the picture appeared on the screen and I almost dropped the phone in shock.

Sofia stood still at the front door of the building. Her hair was curled and she had dressed up in a dark dress.

"Hey," she said casually. "Can I come in?" I didn't answer. Should I let a psycho in to my apartment? It was stupid to think about it and even worse to bring it up. I was completely lost on what to do. "Hello?" she said because of the silence. I snapped out of the trance I was in and quickly muttered an answer.

"Yeah, come in." Crap. I didn't feel too proud about what I had just done. Instead of panicking more, I just went to open the door. Sofia stood there quietly, and perfectly. Her hair was lighter than usual. Maybe she had had it done? Her dress, which I could see better now, was a blood red and sequins made it sparkle in the bright light. She was beautiful.

As I was not happy she was here, I just opened the door and walked away from it. When I noticed Sofia wasn't behind me I instantly turned around to see her still standing at the door, her face glowing happily.

"Why aren't you coming in?" I asked as I creased my eyebrows.

"My family have brought me up with manners. It's not nice to walk in to someone's property without them inviting you in." She said it as though she had said it a thousand times.

"Oh, come in." She came in, shutting the door behind her. Her high heels made a soft tapping sound on the halls laminate. She came in to the apartment and scanned the whole of the scenery. She even started at the ceiling.

"This is a nice accommodation," she said with a perky smile. Her gaze was fixed on Riley, who sat on the couch lazily, unaware of our guest. Suddenly I remembered the cat, and gave her a wary glance, which she didn't see. She looked up at me and gave another one of her almost irresistible smiles. "I love dogs," she said with a wry smile. I felt stupid then, for letting her in to my house. Whatever her obsession with cats – well, it could be any type of animal, or house pet- was endangering one of my most valid friends, Riley. He, however, seemed oblivious to the fact that he was being stroked by a psycho.

I said nothing for a moment, the silence spread through the air like dust. Before it sank through the air, Sofia's phone rang, which came from her small bag. As the silence broke, I felt the tension go down by a couple of degrees.

"Hello?" she answered as she turned her back to me. I looked around the room, trying to keep my eyes off the attractive, yet portentously dangerous woman. "No, I know … yes I'll make sure that … yes I'm just going out for a few hours … ok mum, I'm hanging up now … bye mum." She flipped the phone back down and put it back in her bag.

"Are you going somewhere special tonight?" I asked, suggesting towards the dress that she had on. She nodded slightly and then grinned.

"_We _are going to a club I know!" She said this with excitement and I didn't feel the same way, though I tried to smile. I sighed, making sure it was heard.

"Look, Sofia-"

"I know," she sighed in return. I hoped she was going to explain everything to me, so I waited patiently. "What you may have seen makes me different. But I'm not a psycho, and not some weird person. I'm different, please just accept that." She looked sincere, and she almost looked sad, but it was hard to tell by her expression. What was I supposed to do? I felt stuck, and I couldn't help but give in.

"What are you?" I whispered really quiet, that it was almost to myself, but Sofia heard it because her head jerked up from the floor. She stared in to my eyes for a small moment that made my back shiver.

"I can't tell you that," she whispered a little louder. She spoke as though she meant it. Although the moment was intense, I could see how someone would find it utterly stupid to be talking to someone who could potentially be a threat, confronting them about who they were.

"So you expect me to go out with you, even though I know your some weird cat obsessed person?" And I didn't mean it in the loving way. I could tell she was offended by it, and she turned away to dab her eyes. She turned back around to me with a smile and a sigh.

"We are going out. Please, I really like you," she said softly. That wasn't something I heard every day. I stood back, surprised at what Sofia had said. I took a good look at her and tried to figure her out. If I put the psycho part aside, Sofia was really a lovely person. She was beautiful, and even though I hadn't known her that long, she had been really nice to me. I know something such as a psycho should put you off someone, but I started to see past it. What harm would it do to me? Good thing I wasn't a cat.

"So this thing you do, you can't eat normal food?" I asked half-joking and trying to be serious at the same time. She tried to smile at me, but I could see it was hard for her.

"Something like that. Have you got any other theories apart from psycho?" I shook my head in response, and I was telling her the truth, whether she liked it or not, I thought of her that way. "Come on, get something good on, we are going out!"

I fumbled in my bedroom for a good shirt and tie and some casual jeans. Sofia sat on the couch with Riley, and although I was mostly sure she wouldn't hurt him, I kept leaning over the banister to check on her. I felt so confused. I wanted to go out with her, and it was prominent that I was going with her, whether I liked it or not, but I couldn't help but be scared of her, because something like what I saw just doesn't go away that easily, how good your skills of clearing your memory is. I jogged down the spiralled stairs, fixing my tie at the same time.

"You clean up well Liam," Sofia said, looking at me in a funny way.

"You look good yourself." She smiled at me politely and we went out of my apartment to the car she had brought with her.

A Porsche. Typical. I couldn't help but smile at the large beautiful machine that many dreamed to drive. She saw me looking at it lovingly and she handed me the keys.

"Here," She said, placing the shiny keys firmly in my hands, "You can drive if you want." I grinned from ear to ear.

The car was a beauty, compared to my old beaten car, which if it could, would be glowering in envy right now. The pale cream leather seats crunched beneath us as we sat down, and I rubbed my hands over the steering wheel, rearing to get going. Sofia nodded at me and off we went down the streets to our destination. I suddenly came back to the real life and forgot to ask where we were going.

"Pure. It's a club down on West Street. You know it?" I shook my head whilst stile keeping my eyes on the road.

"I know West Street though. You can direct me when we get there." And surely enough, Sofia gave me directions to the club.

As I stepped out of the Porsche (a car would be too plain for the great roaring machine) the chilled wind hit the back of my neck and made the hairs on my body stand up. The street, which was busy during the day, was ominously quiet, so quiet I could almost hear the echo of my thoughts if I tried to.

I couldn't see the entrance to the club, but in front of me stood a tall building. Its grey exterior made it look like any other usual office building that was slaved over by day and silent at night. I couldn't even see a sign to let anybody know where the club was, which wasn't good for advertisement, or at least I thought so. I tried to search for another entrance, but I couldn't find one anywhere.

"Are you sure we are at the right place?" I asked, pointing a finger to the building. She didn't say anything a first, because she was gaping up at the very tall building, that was probably used for thousands of different businesses. I struggled to get an answer out of her, and for a minute, the silence bored in to me.

She smiled and said, "It's here." I didn't realise I was holding my breath until I let it out. I didn't even know why I was holding my breath.

We walked around the building until we were almost at the back behind the alleyway. By the way Sofia walked I could tell she knew the place well. The entrance, though hard to find, was a big metal door that looked strong enough to hold a bull back. PURE was stencilled in big black letters with a quip underneath that said 'the bar with a bite' and I tried hard not laugh at it, as the line was hardly original. I looked down at Sofia who seemed to be figuring out something in her head. Her eyes looked up as her eyebrows arched, and she was counting something on her fingers. Once she was finished, she gave a couple of knocks that sounded like a code, and I tried to remember it, placing it at the back of my mind for future reference. The door opened (whether it was by someone or it just happened to pop open is a mystery to me) and we seemed to face a long dark corridor with candle lights placed every now and then that made the place look elegant. From what I could see, the walls were painted black, and the carpets were a deep red, but what was beyond the double doors at the end was more magnificent.

I, myself, had never been in to the whole going-out-and-having-a-drink scene, but from what I could tell, and from my previous visits to bars with past girlfriends, is that this bar was beyond classy. It was set in an old fifties kind of style. The ceilings were high, with big pillars dotted around the room. The bar sat aristocratically to the left, and various tables and booths were placed around the room, keeping to the black and red theme. Most people in the bar were wearing expensive suits and extravagant dresses, which made me glad I at least looked half decent with my shirt and tie. Sofia seemed to blend in with the crowd as most of them seemed pale and looked very beautiful. As we entered the room, most of the pale people turned around to look at us, but the rest seemed to just ignore us, and it made me wonder why it was just the pale people who were interested.

"Why are they looking?" I asked out of sheer curiosity in a hushed tone, although I was pretty sure it was Sofia they were looking at. Her face seemed to relax and she put a hand on my chest.

"Because, just guess your one good-looking guy!" She said this with a huge grin, and we continued our way through the small crowd to a booth at the back. The table had a small red candle on it, light, that smelt like roses. If this place wasn't trying to entice young couples for a romantic drink, then they fooled me.

We sat down, and I struggled to take in my surroundings. It all seemed so different to me, and something felt off. Although I had my instincts to leave, I didn't, because it just wasn't courteous. The lights above us shined down on us, and it seemed to bounce off of Sofia's blanched skin, giving it a slight glow.

"Hey, Your skin glows," I said almost too careful to sound pleasant or kind. She looked at me deeply for a second, and then peeled her eyes from mine as she twisted her whole body out of the light, or at least trying to.

"Oh, no it's not, I, it's my new moisturiser I'm using," she stuttered immediately after trying to get out of the spotlight, and I let the moment pass with a sigh.

We ordered some drinks, at which Sofia ordered an unusual drink (something deep red that almost looked like blood, and she never even said what it was called" and after a while of listening to the music in the background and chatting about usual day-to-day life, a man came up to us and I felt Sofia shudder next to me. I turned to look at him to see what she was worried about.

As he walked towards us, I noticed he had a broad smile on him that could pass as any famous actors smile. He was small, well, smaller than me, and he wore a black leather jacket and some styled jeans that made him stand out from the rest of the classic and well-dressed crowd.

When he came closer, I noticed he was pale, like most of the people around here, and he had short dark tousled hair that he styled in to a casual look. His eyes were also dark, with dark circles around them which made him look as though he hadn't had much sleep the past few days. He was slim, and he had a defined jaw that shadowed his neck. Sofia gave a grim look as he stopped at our table, as though she had seen a ghost she just didn't want to see again.

I couldn't help but notice the difference in expressions between the two. It was obvious they were related, through the similarities in facial features. Sofia looked very unhappy, as though this was someone she hated all too much, where as the man looked pleased, maybe pleased for Sofia's unhappiness?

"Damian, what are you doing here?" Sofia swallowed hard, whilst staring at the table.

Damien replied with a peppy smile and a, "I'm here to see you silly!" His voice was sarcastic, but at the same time I took him very seriously. Sofia gave him a daring look and then turned to me, whilst gesturing her hand to Damien.

"This is Damien, my brother. Damien this is Liam-"

"Ah, your boyfriend? So you did find someone that would love you even though you're a va-" Before he could finish his sentence, Sofia cut him off quickly and made suggestions to him that I wasn't supposed to know about whatever she was, which made me more interested, and scared about what she was. I blushed. He shook my hand, and I twitched as I did so, because his hand was ice cold. He looked at me as though he was surprised, and Sofia gave a glance of horror whilst I was taken aback at the temperature of his hand.

"You're, I mean your hand is freezing." It was hard to finish the sentence. As much as I tried to point out something unusual, he just laughed it out with a sharp voice. I tried to do the same as well, but it was hard to laugh it off when it was so unusual. His skin was literally as cold as the ice in my freezer. He looked at Sofia and back at me.

"Damien, may I talk to you over there for a minute." She used a bony white finger to point towards a corner in the bar, which seemed to be dark, mainly because of the light shortage in that area.

As they walked over together, I felt like I was being kept from secrets. Even worse, Sofia had been the one who had invited me here, and then she had the cheek to walk away and talk behind my back. I felt angry at that, as childish as it seems. They talked in low whispers and Damien grabbed Sofia's left arm. Even from far away, you could see that he was tightening his grip, but Sofia shrugged him off as though he was just a twig that was caught on her dress. She gave one final sentence of anger, and then scurried back over to our table.

I was not impressed by her hosting skills, and even less impressed about her brother.

"You, never mentioned you had a brother." I spoke clearly so she knew I was angry.

"I thought I'd got rid of him," she snapped. I had had enough. As my mother use to say, if in doubt, let all hell loose.

"Another one of your weird secrets in which you fail to mention? Hmm? And what about the fact that you're so pale and you glow, you freaking glow!" I said this all in one blow, and as I did so, my hands banged the table in clenched fists. I could feel the attention being drawn to me, and although I didn't like it, I ignored it.

"Look, Liam-"

"No, I'm done guessing. I'm done with your insane life and you're deadly personality. Don't speak to me ever again." I thought I had handled that in a clear, yet outspoken, manner. Before I had a chance to walk away out of the door, and back to my comfy home where I'd crawl up in to bed and sleep forever, something drew me back. I rocked back on my feet and fell to the ground. An echoing bell sounded all around me, and the lights flickered between on and off. People started screaming, and they scampered around the room. Was it an earthquake? I had a strange feeling of someone pulling me back towards the booth from which I had came from, and I was right. Sofia hulled me backwards, her arms curling around my shoulders. She was very strong, and I could see she pulled me with ease. The wind whistled clearly through the doors, and it sounded like water gushing in from all sides of the room. Sofia huddled my in the booth under the table, and the lights went completely out, pitching us in to entire darkness.

"What's happening?" I groaned in a low tone, but Sofia didn't answer. Instead she put her finger to my lips.

The silence was pregnant and eerie. Only some lights at the bar flickered on and electricity seemed to buzz all around us like the place had been torn to shreds. When I looked closer in to the tangent darkness, I realised that was exactly what happened. The carpets were in shreds, the tables were flipped over and as far as I could see, there was something coming towards us. I panicked, and when the lights flickered back on slowly, there were three monsters in front of us.


	4. Chapter 4 There Was A Lot Of Pain

They stared at Sofia and me darkly. Although they looked human, I could tell they were far from it. Their eyes were dark, almost black, and they were an endless pool of evil. They had veins streaming all over their bodies, popping out like tubes. At that moment I wished I could just escape, and forget all about this. At that moment I also wished that I never went with Sofia to the club.

The man, who stood in the middle, was obviously the leader. He stood tall, and I felt aggression seep out of his skin. There were two smaller people behind him, a boy and a girl. They looked like 15-year-old teenagers, but with the grace of 40-year-olds. There faces calmed, and I noticed their veins disappeared. I carefully stood up, and so did Sofia, although, she clenched my arm fairly tightly and her eyes concentrated on the man's, making sure she too was careful.

It was obvious Sofia knew this man. She bowed her head to him as he stared down at us. The atmosphere was tense, but suddenly the man spoke.

"I have come to believe," he began saying to the audience that was left in the bar, "that there is a human in here who may be threatening our secret." He spoke with confidence, and I heard low whispers between the paler people in the crowd, whilst the others looked fearfully at the man. Now it was conclusive that something separated the pale faces from the others. Since I had no idea what they were going on about, I rolled my eyes around the room, almost bored of the scene.

"You," he said, and I suddenly whipped my head up to him. If I could be any more scared, I would have had to excuse myself to go to the loo.

"Yes?"

"Tell me, do you realise what this is?" his voice was rather posh, and almost crystal enough to be tangent.

"Excuse me? I don't understand," I muttered a bit, a slight quiver in my voice.

"This!" He voice boomed this around the room, his arms spread outwards towards the crowd.

"I ... well, this is a bar. Those are people and well we usually call this socialising." As if I wasn't already embarrassed enough, he, and many others, let out a large, amplified laugh.

I tried to laugh, but as soon as I let it out and relaxed, the room turned in to chaos.

All the pale people began to hiss, frantically, and they too had veins seep out of their skin. The other people laughed, and pointed, and then laughed again as though I was a small child that had others play a trick on me. Sofia didn't look at me, but stood silently, her head pressed down to her chest. This was bad, I could tell. Sofia had known about this, though she didn't tell me, and I was yet to have an explanation.

"Ok, Silver, get him," he flicked his hand at the girl, and her face light up. She grinned slightly and stretched her hand out towards me. Her brunette hair swayed when she moved, and her eyes followed my face, those red, evil eyes.

"Don't worry human, this may just hurt ... a little." Before I knew what she was doing, her eyes narrowed and a pain shot through my body. It wriggled its way in to all my muscles, making them seize, and it bite at my brain causing a headache but ten times worse. It was excruciating. I'd never felt pain like it. As the pain continued, and I cradled back and forth on the ground, I noticed the crowd just stared. They watched me intently, watching me cradle, back and forth, back and forth.

"Eric, he is no harm to our race. He will be bound with my blood." This came from Sofia, who was standing behind my crippled body. The pain stopped, though I wasn't able to stand up for a while. I kneeled beside Sofia, almost clutching on to her leg. She looked down at me sorrowfully.

"Ok then, it shall be done. Adrian, give me that knife," the boy passed a knife from the bar in one swift move, so swiftly I could hardly see him move. Once Eric had the knife he walked towards Sofia and me. Everything became blurry then.

He slashed my arm, blood seeping out of it. Sofia went wild, she crazed over my arm, drinking the blood. Then after a moment, I was drinking a liquid that tasted sweet and pure. Shortly after I felt everything go, and the sub-conscious world took over.

I woke up stiff. My muscles ached, my head hurt, and I felt like I had been run over by a bus. As my vision came in to focus I saw Sofia sit beside me on a bed. She smiled at me heartedly, and she put her cold hand on mine. That refreshed my memories and I let out a quick breath.

"It's okay. I am not going to hurt you." The last thing I remembered, she was feeding off me, but something made me want to trust her.

"What happened?"

"Liam, I've got something to tell you," I let out a small inconsiderate laugh.

"Damn right you've got something to tell me!" she looked down on to the bed, her eyes tracing the wrinkles of the duvet.

"I'm a vampire."

Somehow, this felt utterly stupid. A vampire? It was ridiculous to even think that. I felt a smile on my face, but I could tell she was serious and my expression became alarmed. I jumped back off the bed and pointed at her in disbelief. "You're not ... I'm not ... this can't be happening. You're not some kind of mythical creature!"

"But I am. This is what I am. It is all I've ever been. You have to believe me; I would never try to hurt you. I'm a vampire." The words almost ringed in my ears like a bell chiming. I relaxed and faced her promptly. Maybe this was real, but my mind couldn't believe it. The shock had taken over my body, and it grasped the very insides of me.

"Get out." I said quietly after a silent moment. The daylight danced on her skin, and there was that glow I had saw in the club, a vampire thing?

"I can't. I need to be here with you." I got angry. I lashed out at everything I saw, kicking and bashing. I tried to push her down the stairs, forcing her to move out of the house, but she wouldn't. It was very hard to, like pushing a giant boulder. I had no strength against her. She suddenly gave up and started walking reluctantly to the door. "You're becoming one of us!" she tried to fluster out, "You're becoming a vampire and pretty soon you'll become hungry and want to feed." I ignored her plead and let her walk through the door.

"Don't come here again." I slammed the door shut with a breathless sigh.

I counted the days. The days I hadn't left the house. The days I hadn't called work or anyone else for that matter. I was changing and I could feel it. My whole body started to ache, pain seething through my every muscle. I felt hot and sweaty and no matter how hard I tried, there was no cooling me down. I should have seen a doctor, but I couldn't. What if what Sofia had said was true and I was becoming one of them, a monster. I rested on the sofa, too ill to even move. How much longer was this going to last?

Febuary

March

April

May


	5. Chapter 5 My Parents

Time had passed. The illness slowly passed, though I still felt some side effects. It still burned, like it had at the start, I was hungry for something more than food. Everything I ate didn't satisfy my needs. Still, I tried to push the memories of that night away from my mind, and I made my way to my parent's house.

Everyone looked at me as I entered their almost too big mansion. My mother and father, especially, stared at me in astonishment. I didn't know what to do, so I just smiled and made my way through the big crowd. My mother and father hugged me as I went up to them and they smelt wonderful, and it reminded me how hungry I was.

"Son, what are you doing here?" Mrs Carter said to me as I inhaled the sweet scent that was calling my name. I couldn't think of a reply, my mind focusing on the scent. My mother looked at me daringly, as though she knew something was up. Her eyes strained to focus on my pale face and I suddenly snapped back in to the present.

"Erm ... Yeah I've just decided I've spent way too long away from you guys," I lied exceedingly. I couldn't even tell myself why I was there. Maybe something in my mind drew me towards this gathering. Maybe it was something in the air. That sweet scent. My mother and Father looked at me with shocked eyes. Of course, I would never just go to see them for them.

"Well, since your here there are some people that want to meet you. Oh, and Jared and Tess are here." I nodded and made my way through the crowd once again.

My former home had definitely changed since i had been a child. It seemed much larger, the white walls stretched high, and the floors seemed to flourish the mansion with elegance. I was never ashamed of being born in to a rich family. I always wanted to go to a public school, but my mother persisted that I go to a private school, mainly because she knew I would have been picked on. She also wanted me to have a proper education, whatever that was.

I made my way up the large staircase. I had to get out of the crowd, the scent almost too much to bear.

My room was the same I had left it. It glowed delightfully, the cream and yellow walls made it the perfect children's haven. I was never allowed poster or anything a normal teenager boy was allowed. I had clean picture perfect walls, a gold bed and the biggest collection of toys you could ever imagine. I walked over and sat down on the bed. It was soft and made out of the finest materials. Its gold satin cover shimmered in the late spring light. I noticed I was sweating madly. It dripped off my forehead like rain, and it felt strange because of the temperature. I was hungry, and I felt it now, not in my stomach, but in my whole body. It burned through my brain like a forest fire. Everything around me seemed to daze, the child-like fantasy room going out of sight. Sofia appeared through the window as quickly as I had become dazed. She was the last person I wished to see, but she was also the only person I knew would be able to help me. As far as I could see, she was fumbling around with something outside the window, and then she pulled herself through it, landing perfectly balanced.

"What the hell are you doing here?" she burst with anger.

"Since when can you tell me what to do?" I burst back with just as much anger. My whole body shook.

"Since I was your master, now hurry up and leave through the front door."

I considered my options then before I actually made a decision. I could have left with her and she would help me to the most that I needed, and I could have also stayed, to which I might have never known what would have happened, and if I was dangerous, I wouldn't dare put them at risk. It looked as if I only had one real option.

"I'll be there in a minute," I let out with a breathless sigh, "I have to say goodbye to my parents. I hope you understand?" Sofia nodded lightly in reply, her whole body dropping elegantly out of the window in one swift move.

I gathered myself together, fixing my hair in the mirror and sorting my tie. As I made my way down the stairs, my mother looked up at me concerned, her eyes darting over my overheated body. She could tell something was wrong, a mother's instinct. She hurried over to me, stopping in mid conversation with someone, a tall man with grey hair and a wrinkled face.

Mother herself was ageing. Her hair once bursting with colour was now grey, silver streaks running through it. Her lips pursed into concern, had small prominent wrinkles around it, her cheekbones were caved and there was little life in her face, although she was generally a happy person and wouldn't be seen without one of her charming smiles.

How long had I been away from them? It seemed they had aged ten years over the past few months, they seemed ... old. I didn't know how long I would be away from them; I didn't even know whether I would _ever_ see them again.

"Liam, honey, what's wrong?" she seemed generally concerned. What happens if I was dying? How would I let them down gently?

"Mum, nothing is wrong, I'm just coming down with a bug or something. Where is Dad?" Her expressions seemed less concerned when I stated I was coming down with a bug.

"He's out in the gardens, talking to the Mayor," she said proudly, her party attracting important people of the city. I sighed. It seemed too important to interrupt. Tears almost came to my eyes and I had to sniff them back in case my mother took note.

"Honey, are you crying? You're really scaring me." Her brow was creased into a hundred wrinkles.

"Bye mum, say bye to dad for me." I hugged her tight, embracing what could be our last hug ever.

"I will."

I left the party, my eyes stinging, and the hunger grew ever more. Sofia was waiting for me in the courtyard. Even though she hadn't come in, she had dressed up for the occasion, maybe to blend in.

"So what are you going to do with me" I asked with my teeth clenched and my fists bundled tightly.

"Oh don't be so over dramatic." She laughed mockingly. I was shocked she was that sadistic.

"Well, I've never seen someone quite over enthusiastic about killing someone before." She stopped abrupt. Her hair swayed slowly in the wind as it whispered down the drive, the trees shook softly. She gave me a dark look, something I had never seen before. Her face looked beautiful but dangerous at the same time.

"Know this Liam; I would never kill any human. Yes I am a vampire," her eyes scanned my face for any sign of expression at the word, so I tried to remain motionless, "but I would never hurt anyone to feed my hunger." We stood for a moment in silence. The man back at the hotel flashed in my mind.

"What about the man in the hotel, he was all hypnotised and stuff-"

"But not dead," she cut me off. "I fed from him yes, but I did not harm him in any way. Sometimes I need some human blood in my system so I can stay strong, otherwise I can't protect myself. The hypnotising is something we vampires pick up on, a natural gift I suppose." I looked at her, a bit of a confused look upon my face. She relaxed and shrugged her shoulders, laughing a bit as we continued our walk.

"So what about me? Am I a vampire?" The word bit on the inside of my jaw, but I shook it off with a sharp look in Sofia's direction.

"Not yet. You're going through the transformation. I'm surprised it took so long, after all it should only take a few weeks not a few months," she made a face, "but it is happening now whether you like it or not." I looked at her, wondering whether I was giving her an evil glare or a satisfied scowl that I had been able to make her tell me everything. I felt the hunger burning through me once more, and my legs gave way, as I sprawled out on the small and gravelled road. Sofia sighed and rolled her eyes, as if I was being dramatic or over emphasising my pain, but she did kneel down and picked me up from the cold ground. I was surprised she was able to lift me, but yet again I wasn't remembering she was a vampire. Her bones would be thrice as strong as a normal human, even stronger. When she picked me up she did grunt a bit.

"Oh, you are getting heavy! It must be taking affect then." With that we suddenly were taking off through the woods at a fair rate. The wind was whistling in my ear as it passed us. I wondered where Sophia was taking me, but I was more obsessed with the fact that I was going to become a vampire. I was going to be strong. I was going to be inhuman. It all felt like a big dream, like it wasn't real. I was just to be shaken from it and then everything would be normal. But half of me didn't even want normal. Half of me wanted to enjoy this adventure, if that was what it was. I wanted a taste of something new, and I was able to get it from Sophia.

We headed back to the hotel. Sophia managed to get by quickly without anyone seeing. Vampires were also extremely fast. We headed to the elevator. We waited until we reached the floor I had visited last time when I saw Sophia and the crazed man, who now I know Sophia fed from, and in to her suite with a glide rather than a stride.

Her room was much different than I thought. The typical vampire was expected to have dark rooms, high ceilings and coffins for beds, but Sophia's was different. It was bright and airy, the walls a bright red making the room warm and cosy. There was, to my surprise, a large bed at the far left corner of the room. I stopped exploring the room for a minute to impose a question on Sophia.

"I didn't know vampires sleep?" I asked disbelievingly in between grunts of pain as she laid me down on the bed. It was soft and heaven like that I could only lie still as relaxed as I could get in my state. She only smiled as she propped me in to a comfortable position.

"We don't my friend. I just like to lie down and close my eyes, a sort of meditation if you like. It makes me feel human for a bit." She said this with a bit of sadness in her voice; it was concealed beneath her though. She never dared show it.

"Do you miss being human?" I almost wished I hadn't asked that question, because she looked away, her face saddened.

"Yes I do. I would never choose this life for myself, and that is why I am sorry to you for what I've done to you." I just stared at her with widened eyes. I felt ashamed of myself for thinking that Sophia loved to torture people and drink blood. After a short pause she spoke.

"I'm going to go get someone who will be able to help you. I'll be back, don't worry." She leaned over and dared to give me a kiss. Her lips felt cold and marble like, but it also felt nice and passionate. She leaned back again and walked out the door in a slow manner, as if stammering over what she had just done. When she closed the door behind her, I felt myself exhaling heavily, no realisation I had been holding my breath.


	6. Chapter 6 Someone Call A Doctor

I had drifted off to sleep. I woke up sore and hungry. My eyes were now burning, the lights scorching my skin. Sofia stood beside the bed, hovering over me, stroking my pale face. A small, but rather old woman was standing beside her, looking at me strangely with large circular glasses. I looked from the small woman to Sofia and back again.

"Liam, this is Dr. Milligan. She is a witch. She is going to help you." All the words sounded so assuring through Sofia's sweet and subtle voice, except for the witch part. Was I really hearing right? Or was it the start of me going mental? Dr. Milligan smiled at me and then examined my face. She looked like a dwarf, only being the height of one of your legs. Her hair was a pale and pasty grey, her face wrinkled and old. I wondered how old she was, but it was rude to ask, and I wouldn't bother asking at such times. She looked from one of my eyes to the other, her face slightly swaying from side to side. She patted me gently on the shoulder as if to comfort me, and then turned to Sofia.

"What he needs is some blood to get him going." Dr. Milligan opened her bag that she carried with her and got out a blood bag that looked like it was from some local hospital. She held it up to my mouth and pierced the top of it. I looked over at Sophia, who had her arms folded, biting her so pale lip. She nodded to me, an encouragement to drink it. I felt as if I couldn't. This blood had come from a human, and it didn't sound too appealing. I lifted me tongue towards the hole in the plastic, and the Doctor tilted it slightly. I felt the cold blood hit my tongue, it slithered down my throat, soothing every burning pain I had in me. It felt so good, healing me instantly, letting me recover from the hunger, and it didn't taste as bad as I had thought. I actually enjoyed it. I pushed the bag of blood closer to my mouth, the blood pouring into my mouth. It devoured me, and I felt so good right there and then, until Sofia grabbed the bag of me. I felt a surge of anger wave through me, and some part of me reacted towards this. The thing that was stopping the pain was taken away from me, and I lashed out then. I swiped my hand against Sofia, knocking her back on to the floor. She speedily got back up, looking over at me, glaring. The blood splattered everywhere, the walls, the ceiling, and the carpet. I realised what I had done, and as quickly as that my temper calmed down, and my body started to calm as well.

"You need to control your thirst. If you don't start out right, you won't be able to be around humans. That means not seeing your family again, do you want that?" I shook my head; my breathing had slowed back to its normal pace, which was weird, since I was technically dead. She sorted a few things she had knocked over in the process of falling, and Dr. Milligan packed her bag back up.

"That should be all he needs. A few drops of blood now and again, but make sure he doesn't go overboard. You'll have to teach him how to be around humans of course, and fit in with daily life." Sofia nodded at Dr. Milligan's advice and the Doctor went away, quietly closing the door behind her. I rested on the bed for a minute, letting my head sort out what had been happening. I looked at the blood spatters on the ceiling and then down at Sofia. She sat on the chair beside the bed, blood stained cushions scattered on it. She held on in her hand, closely to her face, holding it there, lifeless.

"I'm sorry," I finally managed to mutter. She sighed in to the pillow and then looked around the room. Her face seemed quite amused, and I even thought I heard a chuckle come from her lips.

"It's not your fault. It happens to first time vampires."

"I guess there's no going back now is there?" In reply she shook her head sombrely.

"You should go for a shower whilst I clean this place up. It will help you take your mind of things." I didn't refuse the offer, it sounded just too good right then after all the events of that day. I made my way through to the bathroom, which it was a clear pathway to it since it was a hotel room. I closed the door quietly and turned on the shower. The steam started to circle the room. The mirrors fogged up and I drew a smiley face on them. What did that mean? Was that really how I felt right now? I couldn't believe I had just drawn a smiley face when everything was so mucked up. I was a _vampire_. I couldn't change that ever. I would always be dead. And the thing was, I wouldn't have become this if I hadn't worked in the restaurant. I knew Sofia was bad for me as soon as she walked in the hotel months ago, but I didn't know it would amount to this. I couldn't help but think about my immortal state as the hot water ran over me. The thought that I couldn't end my life with a simple overdose of drugs or hanging myself scared me. What did it take to kill a vampire?

When I went back through to Sofia, she was sitting on the bed huddled up. The room was spotless; being a fast acting vampire could have its advantages. She looked lifeless, something that seemed common to her.

"If I felt emotion, right now I'd be full of sorry for you. I should never of brought you in to my life." I wished that was true, but part of me was alright about the vampire situation. Something made me want to be this way.

"It's alright," I said in a light cheery tone, "I was going to die sooner or later right?" I chuckled a bit, Sofia laughed a bit too. "So you don't feel any emotion at all?" I asked curiously.

"Well, sometimes I feel something, but most of the time I don't. Dead, remember? Of course you're new so it will take a while for your emotions to die, but something will stay with you."

That night we talked about vampire life. Sofia had insisted I dropped out of college, and she would too, because of the danger I could be putting other people in (which was a bit ironic considering I hadn't even started yet). We also talked about her life and how she became a vampire, something which she kept close to her heart.

"I was walking down the streets of London at night. It was 1882. The city bustled with life in the daytimes, but now it was starting to turn dark, the skies deepening with liquid colour, and the streets were calming down, only one soul passed me on my way home. I came to a quiet place in the outside of the city. I had walked for miles to get home because the decent shop was miles away from my home, so I would travel far every month to do a shop. I was still young at the time, seventeen, and I lived with my mother and father, and Damien, my brother.

It was getting near ten o'clock, and the groceries were getting heavy in my arms. I had come to a country-like road that winded around the little village outside London. I sat down on the side of the road, the groceries sat beside me until I could regain my breath. It was a pretty night; the stars had come out to shine with the moon. The light reflected of the damp road, and I followed the beam of light down the road with my eyes. That was when I saw my first vampire.

He looked at me with ravenous eyes, his eyes were deep red like rose petals. The dark circles around them were horrific, which made him look as if he had not slept in a long time. Veins were predominant around his body; a certain glow came from them. I could tell he was hungry, that look he gave me.

Of course I didn't know vampires existed then. There were stories and rumours, but no real solid evidence for anyone to believe. I stared at him for a moment, his hair shining in the moonlight.

'Who are you?' I asked with a shaky voice. He didn't answer, but took one step closer to me. There was no one else around, and I didn't know what to do. 'What do you want?' another shaky question. Each time I spoke he took a step forward. 'If you want food, I can help get you something to eat. My mother will be happy to help you, she cooks great food.' For the first time, he spoke with a dark voice.

'I'm not interested in that sort of food.' He spoke with confidence that only a demon could have. I shivered at his answer. Right then all the stories raced through my mind.

'What are you?' I asked starting to get up and gather the groceries, not taking my eyes of him for one second.

'Tell me, have you ever heard those stories. The ones about _vampires?_' That had me running. I tried to anyway, but I tripped on the road, the groceries flying everywhere, but my dress cushioned my fall. I tried to crawl, but it hurt too much, my ankle being sprained. The vampire enjoyed my pain, my struggle.

'I'm going to enjoy you,' he laughed at me, and then sped towards me, grabbing my neck and biting in to me. I screamed in pain, it was unlike anything I had ever felt before. He continued to drain me as he covered my mouth with one hand. It was cold and marble like. When he heard a noise, he stopped. It was a carriage coming our way. He looked at me and grinned. 'Well if I can't kill you, I'll have to turn you.' I closed my eyes and feared the worst. He ripped the skin clean of his wrist. The blood flowed out it freely, and he put it to my mouth, making me drink it. It surprised me that vampires even had blood, but sure enough, here I was drinking it. It tasted sweet, but like metal at the same time. It was a lot darker than usual blood. It started to take over me, making me feel hungry for more, but he removed his wrist from my mouth and lifted me from the road. He flung me in to the bushes and was soon gone.

I scrambled around the place, searching for my home. I dragged myself in to the house, my family waiting for me in the living room. They looked in horror at me. I was blood stained and looked like evil's daughter. That was the night I turned my family in to vampires. Once I had realised I was drinking their blood, I knew I had to change them. They forgave me eventually, Damien especially taking his new powers well. As years passed we had to move places, change the way we dressed and talked. It was hard at first but we got used to it. This life was something I would never choose."

I looked at her hard in the face. Although she remained expressionless, I knew she felt sad. I hugged her tightly, cooing to her that everything was alright. She looked up at me, and embraced me in a powerful kiss. Her lips were gentle against mine, cold but beautiful. When we broke our kiss I continued to hug her, until the sun rose the next day.


	7. Chapter 7 The House Wrecking

The sun gleamed gently on our settling faces. I saw Sofia glow lightly, her face as white as that of a porcelain doll. I wondered what I would do today. Nothing was planned for me now, since I had quite college and Sofia had got me a few days off work. I looked down at her and kissed her forehead.

"What shall we do today?" I asked her, knowing we'd have all the time in the world to do whatever we wanted. She sighed, something brewed in her mind.

"We are going to see my parents for a few days in Scotland. They wish to see you." I looked down at her concerned, but she simply laughed and shook her head as she got up off the bed.

"They're not going to interrogate you, you know. I've mentioned you a few times when you were a human and they've been expecting to see you. Now that you're a vampire, it seems like a good time to visit and tell them." I smiled sarcastically. Meeting Sofia's parents I could handle, but meeting her vampire parents? I wasn't sure whether I'd make it alive out of Scotland or not. But sure enough I was agreeing to it in a matter of minutes because of Sofia's charm. I no longer saw her as a psycho. We packed a few clothes, Sofia travelling lighter than me. I wondered why, but she explained she would have all the clothes she needed in Scotland. We travelled by plane, which was difficult to get me out of the hotel without Lara seeing me, but we managed sure enough. We're vampires right? Once we had touched down in a rather small airport, we were taken by limo out to the countryside. The scenery was beautiful, the green grass blowing in the wind, the flowers beginning to rise from the ground to show their colourful faces. It was a bit wet, but that added to the potential of the scene. The just darkened grey skies made it seem like some sort of fantasy. Sometimes a rainy day was just what the doctor ordered.

We went down a long, winding road. The road travelled along a river, which lead to a loch deep in the bed of the valley. The rain droplets settled on the limo's windows, each droplet like a small crystal. My attention was quickly drawn towards the building coming in to view. It was a huge, old mansion. Bigger than my parents, it looked as if it could fit a maze in it. The stone looked washed and dark, the windows fitting nicely in between them. As we came in to the courtyard, I saw the huge doors open. Their silver hinges creaked as we climbed out the car, and on the other side of them doors were Sofia's parents.

They stood on the steps of their grand house smiling graciously. Sofia quickly sped up to her mother, hugging her tightly.

"Sofia!" She stated with excitement. She was an elegant woman, who looked like she was in her early 50's. Her hair was just greying; a hint of brunette in it, and her face barely had wrinkles. Her father smiled at me and extended a hand out towards me. I walked up the steps, going quicker than I thought, and I almost lost my balance. I looked back at the distance from the car.

Sofia's father grinned. "It takes time to get used to Phasing places."

"Phasing sir?" I asked as I shook his firm hand.

"Yes, Phasing is the speedy way we use to get to somewhere quickly. And call me Mr Smith." I smiled at him and gave his hand another shook. Sofia stepped in as I stepped back and hugged her father.

"Hello daddy!" she said in to his neck.

"Hello princess," he said joyfully back. I extended a hand out towards Mrs Smith and she shook it.

"You must be Liam. Sofia has told us so much about you." I smiled at the thought of someone talking about me in a good sense.

I felt welcome to their great home. As we walked inside I felt the atmosphere, thick with history and alive with a feeling of happiness. The place looked even richer on the inside. The walls were high built and the sleek wooden panels glimmered in the light, reflecting the suns radiation through the pristine windows. The floor was wooden as well, as was most of the house. Everything was beautifully varnished, and Liam wondered why vampires would have so much wood in their house.

"We're not afraid of wood. We are secluded here and wish no trouble upon us," Mrs Smith said this with certainty and then laughed slightly at my shocked face.

"My mother has a remarkable talent," Sofia said in a rather formal tone. "Before she was turned she was a witch, and she had the power of reading the thoughts of others. Now she is half vampire, half witch."

"The best of both words I suppose." Sofia's mother looked at me with a smile. I thought of how much power she must have had, being both vampire and witch, and I wondered how much authority she had in the vampire world, as she looked like the type of person who would be very confident in giving out orders. I stopped thinking about that then in case she could hear me and thought I was being rude.

We walked through several opened rooms until we reached an old fashioned living room. We all sat down on the cool, 20th century furniture, and I looked around to marvel at the room. It was even bigger and bolder than the halls we had just come from. The fireplace sat on the furthest away wall, and it was almost the same size as a person. It had a stone frame around it, and the mantel piece had several pictures of a family of three in early times; the Smith family.

I talked to them for a bit, socialising about my new life and their lives too.

"So, if I'm not being rude on asking, what do you do for a living?" I was interested by this only because of their rich lifestyle that not many could afford, and with that money must have a great job along with it.

Mrs Smith spoke first. "I am on the Vampire Associate Council, sometimes referred to as V.A.C."

"Vampires have a Council?" I seemed surprised that after all those stories about vampires, the real truth was that they were civilised as much as humans, apart from drinking blood.

"Oh yes, and laws too!" She seemed excited to tell me this. "We have to pass punishment to those who do not respect the laws. We deal with the ways of vampires and their rights too. Evil doings are not to be kept from the Queen." So they had a Queen too? This was getting more like human life by the minute. Mrs Smith looked at me and then to Sofia, a look of disappointment.

"What's wrong?" I asked concerning, as I looked between them. They still kept quiet until Sofia finally looked at me. "What?" I repeated.

"One of those laws is that no human must be turned without the consent of the Queen." I started in to space for a moment to see how this would relate to me. It just didn't make sense.

"But it was those vampires at the bar who told you to turn me. Wasn't he anything to do with the Queen?" Sofia looked at me with sad eyes.

"No. Eric, Silver and Adrian are part of a secret tribe. They believe that vampires should be invisible to humans and that they should sacrifice human bodies for blood. When Eric threatened to kill you, I knew I had to do something about it. So I turned you. They are well known amongst the vampire community, but yet the Queen chooses to ignore it, because if she chose to fight against them, it would cause uproar in society, not to mention they are strong too.

The problem is no one had informed the Queen of this event-"

"And she's coming after me now?" I worried, mainly because I had never met this Queen, and I was afraid of what she could do to me.

"We don't know yet. But it is a matter of time before she finds out. There were several people at that bar that night. We'd need something of a miracle to get us out of this situation." I felt a sickness in the bottom of my stomach, something that made me feel, made me know, that something bad was going to happen.

That night was harsh. The winds were racing throughout the surrounding area of the mansion. Sofia and I had a room to ourselves, a small guest room in one of the many floors of the house. I heard the windows creak and whisper as the wind tried to crash through them, and I was surprised they were still holding on. Sofia lay beside me on the soft, king size bed. Her eyes concentrated on a book she was reading, moving back and forth in a steady rhythm. The fire was sparking with a comfortable light that made her face look pure and fresh. I just lay beside her, watching her read. It amazed me how far I had come, from hating her to loving her. It also seemed weird as well, because I knew that the right thing to do was to hate her for being so secretive with me, for turning me in to a vampire. But I couldn't. This was my life now, and I had to get used to it.

That was when I heard it. That small noise you can hear in the background, but it isn't really there. It ringed in my ears, and I could feel it in me. Sofia could hear it too, the elegant sound of death. She stopped reading her book, almost dropping it to look at me. Our eyes concentrated on each other, a storm now brewing outside. Sofia put one hand over her mouth and turned away slightly, as if exercising her neck.

"What is it?" I asked in great fear, although I should have already known what it was. My greatest fear yet.

"They're here. The Queen's come looking for you. She's here." She quickly jumped out of bed and started running out of the room at an urgent pace. I proceeded to follow her along halls and corridors until she jumped the banister. I stopped immediately, worried. It was four flights of stairs she was jumping from, and it had to be impossible not to get hurt. I heard a loud thud, and I looked over the banister in worry. Sofia stood there looking up at me, a tense look on her face.

"Just jump!" she shouted from below. I took a few steps back and then ran for it, grabbing the banister and flinging myself over it. I came to the ground with a thud, almost damaging the wooden floors. As Sofia started off towards the living room, I too followed. We stopped abruptly after entering the room. Sofia's mother was enjoying some knitting beside the cosy fire, and her father, reading a newspaper he'd probably already read today. The stopped what they were doing to look up at us. I thought they must have known, but even Mrs Smith's face was clueless.

"The Queen's here. She's come for me." Mrs Smith's face was shocked; her hand over her mouth, the same reaction Sofia had given. Maybe the Queen coming after someone didn't happen very often. "I should leave. If I leave quick enough she won't even touch your house-"

"You will do no such thing!" Mrs Smith interrupted. "You're part of our family now. We stick together." Mr Smith stood up quickly and put down his paper.

"We need to put out all form of light around the house. We'll hide in the cellar until she goes." Everyone dashed off to put out lights around the house, and trust me, there was a lot of them. I remembered having a fire on upstairs, so I dashed up to the bedroom. The fire was glowing red amongst the ashes. I grabbed a copper jug that was sitting with flowers in it from the bedside table. I hesitantly threw the flowers out of the jug, and chucked the water on to the remaining fire. It hissed in protest as it simmered to sleep. Sofia came in the bedroom and rushed around, switching of all the lights. I could see panic in her face, something that I guessed you wouldn't find often in a vampire. We stood in the dark for a minute, looking at each other very closely. Sofia came closer to me and hugged me, and I returned the gesture. She gave me a light peck on the lips.

"Everything's going to be alright." I whispered to her.

"But what if its not. Our world is a lot darker than anything a human can imagine. She's powerful and won't hesitate to kill us." I thought I was able to escape death for a while as I was a vampire now. I must have guessed wrong.

"All the lights are out!" Mr Smith shouted up to us. "Get down to the cellar now!" We didn't waste any time, scrambling to the cellar. This time we used the stairs, as I was not prepared to jump again. As we reached the bottom of the stairs-near the front door-I saw a figure standing outside the door. I stopped and pointed at the door.

"Sofia." I said in a dull yet serious tone. Sofia turned around to look, and Mr and Mrs Smith appeared immediately. Mrs Smith closed her eyes and steadied herself against the wall.

"It's Damien." Everyone sighed with relief and Sofia opened the door. Damien grinned as everyone looked at him.

"What? No welcome home? Speaking of home, why is it so dark in here?" Sofia groaned as she pulled Damien inside and pushed the door shut with a hard push. As we rushed down some hidden stairs, Sofia explained the situation to Damien, who laughed at most of it. He seemed as though not much mattered. We entered a small dark room, its corners light with a small light at each of them. We huddled inside and Mrs Smith shut the large, stone door. Her hands wondered over the edges of the cold stone, sweeping them lightly. I wondered what she was doing, the intricate way she weaved her hands over the four corners of the door. Mrs Smith started to mutter something again and again, whispering it to the door.

"Chiuderci da tutto malvagio, per proteggerci con questa barriera lei ci fornisce, Chiuderci da tutto malvagio, per proteggerci con questa barriera lei ci fornisce ..." She repeated the words in a foreign language. I didn't understand what it meant, and I looked over to Sofia, who just looked as clueless as me.

"It's Italian. It's a spell to protect us inside here, locking the door from others," Damien said this in a rather casual and controlled voice. I noticed he was always relaxed.

"What is she saying?"

"She is saying 'shut us from all evil, protect us with this barrier you provide us'" I looked over to Mrs Smith, who was finished concentrated. I could feel the magic surround us. It made you feel light, butterflies in your stomach. If you had said this to me a year ago, I wouldn't believe it, but now I was open to a new world of possibilities.

We waited silently, each vampire holding themselves in suspense. We all looked up in to the dusty ceiling as footsteps walked over it. They were light, dainty, something you'd expect from a Queen. It was followed by two other pairs of footsteps. One slightly heavier and the other were almost as light as the Queens. The voices were quite audible as our hearing was very strong.

"They are here. I can smell it." A dark, posh male voice spoke. I could match it to the light footsteps of the henchman. The other one spoke.

"But this is their house, it _would _smell of them." This voice was slightly lower, rougher. They were both silenced with a 'shhhh' from the Queen. She raised her hand to both of them, and at the same time I was amazed how I was able to tell what they were doing. She walked forward alone, taking a deep breath in. Then she wiped a finger alone the banister of the stairs.

"We will leave for now," she said loudly, and I felt as though she was pointing it at us. "But be warned. When you decide to run, we _will_ track you down." I heard footsteps leave in a flash; they sped away out the back door. They were gone, and I felt my whole body relax. But I knew it wasn't over yet.


	8. Chapter 8 I'm Running Away

We all gathered in the living room. There were no lights on, but there was a shimmering glow from the large fire. I paced back and forth on light feet, my arms crossed and biting my lip. Mr and Mrs Smith sat on the luxury couch, Sofia leaning over them, staring in to the fire. Damien chewed on an apple, leaning casually against the fireplace. I awed at his casual state, even now at the worst of times. Maybe he wasn't even concerned about it, because it was me, a newcomer to his family. Or maybe it was the way he always acted, a usual state of mind. Maybe he was like this before he was a vampire. I shuddered, a tingly sensation ran down my back and I looked across to Sofia, who looked at me with an I-don't-know-what-to-do look and I ran my fingers through my hair, sighing.

"What do we do then?" I asked calmly, even though if I was human, I'd be freaking out right about now. Sofia turned to me, giving me a sharp, executed look.

"We run," she said intensely. Those two words seemed daring and undecided. Could we really run from a Queen? But it wasn't just any Queen, it was a vampire Queen. I didn't even know if I could do it, running away and leaving my family behind. I took a useless breath and then stood still looking over at the Smith family.

"I don't expect any of you to come along. I'm sorry if I ever got you in to any kind of trouble." Mrs Smith waved her hand and snorted at the same time.

"Please darling, but you have not harmed this family one bit. You are part of Sofia's life now, which makes you part of our life too."

"I'll go with you. I'm here for you, as long as you want me here." Sofia walked over to me, kissing me on the forehead and cupping my hands in hers. I smiled at her, knowing I had someone to count on whenever.

"Look, if you want," Damien began, stepping in after being so quiet, "I can take you across to France and there you can make your own way down to Italy-"

"And how do we get away with being in Italy without informing the Italian King?" Sofia asked Damien in a direct way.

"Wait, there's more than just one Queen? There are more high powered people?"

"Yes," Damien said rolling his eyes, "Sis, I'm sure you can avoid the Kings minions; mix in with the crowd." She mused over it, knowing that she could if she tried. She started slowly nodding her head. I stood, waiting for her to speak, and she opened her lips, but closed them again shortly before opening them once more.

"Ok. If you can get us in to France I can take us to Italy. There we will be safe for a while." I agreed with her, and she rushed up the stairs to pack.

Everything seemed to happen so quickly. Sofia was down with a packed rucksack in five minutes, looking lightly packed. I knew we'd need to go back to my house first, to gather my stuff as well. We headed out to the courtyard. Sofia was dressed more casually now, and I felt that it was going to be a rough journey.

"Damien, we'll meet you down in London, we need to make a few stops first." I said this as Sofia hugged her mother and father goodbye. He pursed his lips and shrugged his shoulders. I watched as he ran in to the misty night, his body disappearing in to the darkness. I walked over to Mr and Mrs Smith, giving a handshake to Mr Smith and hugging Mrs Smith. She rubbed my back as I hugged her.

"You two must be careful. It was a pleasure meeting you Liam." Sofia grinned as I looked over to her.

"Are you ready to test your vampire skills?" She took off in to the darkness, and I realised we wouldn't be taking a car, as I followed her down the empty road.

We arrived at my house an hour later. I noticed that we were pretty fast. It seemed the same as I walked in to the flat. Its designer walls light up with the reflection of the bright lights. Everything seemed as clean as usual, nothing out of place. I hurried up to my bedroom to fetch a few clothes and packed them neatly in a rucksack. I heard Sofia gently pet Riley, and I cursed under my breath as I realised he needed someone to feed him whilst I was gone.

"What are you going to do with Riley?" She shouted up to me, as I continued to pack. I finished and swung the rucksack over my back.

"I'll drop him off at the restaurant with Lily. She likes dogs, cats, animals in general." I said this with a flustered voice and Sofia laughed a bit. She didn't seem as nervous as me, but yet, she was an older vampire than me, having more time for her emotions to subdue. I grabbed Riley's collar and lead and put them on him. He started to get excited, thinking of an adventure or a walk. I sighed knowing that he wasn't going to like being dropped off with Lily.

As we walked round to the hotel, it gave me time to breathe, or at least think anyway. I couldn't get over the fact that I was going to have to leave my life behind me to run from the Queen. I did consider just turning myself in, because if running away constantly all my life was what I was going to have to do then why live. But then I also thought of reasons to live. I had Sofia, and I thanked whoever helped me find her. I was in love with her, and it pained me to admit it because I shouldn't have been. I should have been angry with her for dragging me in to this, for making me leave any trace of human life. But I couldn't and I knew nothing was going to change my decision.

We reached the shiny glass doors of the hotel, and as we walked in, Riley seemed disappointed that we were here instead of a park or around the streets. I realised that everyone was staring at me. But I also noticed then that it wasn't just me they were staring at, but Sofia and I as a couple. I could hear some people moaning about having a dog in here, but I continued to the bar, ignoring others. Lily and Lara both stared at us, Sofia hanging around my arm, proud. I was proud too, but I could tell Lara was far from happy. I ignored her, and turned to Lily who seemed as happy as ever, pouring a drink in to a perfectly shined glass.

"Hey Lily, you like dogs, right?" She looked down at Riley, and looked up to me with a quizzical look on her face.

"Uhm, I like dogs," she said laughing a bit and making it sound unsure. I continued to plead anyway.

"I need someone to look after Riley whilst I'm away. I shouldn't be gone long," I said lying to her. I didn't know whether I was going to be gone long or not. "A few days, maybe a week." She twisted her blonde ponytail in her fingers whilst she thought about it, giving an 'uhm' and 'well' in between. Finally she agreed.

"Sure. I love dogs. Riley's the name right?" I nodded and handed the lead over to Lily as she took Riley out the back of the restaurant. Lara looked at me harshly, and Sofia gave me a peck on the cheek, drawing back from me.

"I'll wait in the lobby. This is your battle." She whispered this in her angel-like voice. Sofia walked away and I was immediately faced with a look of disgust on Lara's face, shining a glass a bit too hard.

"You two seemed to cosy up to each other. What did she do, let you in on the Smith's secret?"

"Something like that," I replied harshly. If I was being treated like that, I may as well fight back.

"So you don't show up for work in ages, and now you want to go away somewhere. What's wrong with you Liam, you used to be such a good kid. Over this past year I've seen you change. You're not you anymore." I couldn't believe how right she was, but I kept a straight face. I sighed, not knowing what to say.

"I'm in some trouble right now, Lara. I don't expect you to understand this, but I do expect you to respect it." I turned me face away, hoping to finish the harsh conversation.

"Be careful." She said as I stopped in the middle of the bar. I turned back and gave her a light kiss on her forehead. She gasped, and I guessed it was because of the temperature of my skin, but I turned back and started towards the lobby. Sofia was waiting calmly beside the chairs and she stood up as I walked towards her.

"Is everything ok?" she asked quietly as we left the building.

"Everything is fine." I replied with a lying smile.

Our last stop was my mother and father's. Sofia waited in the grand gardens, wondering the green animal figures carved out by our family gardener. I didn't go in. I didn't want to cause any distress, as my mother was sure to worry about my sudden vacation to Italy. They hadn't seen me since my pre-transformation.

I crouched down below the finely painted frames of the living room window. I could see the lights glow nicely through the glass. My mother sat on her chair, knitting in hand. She looked like an old lady, sitting quietly, her silver rimmed glasses slipping down her nose. Across from her was my father, looking as old as she was. He read a paper, flicking through the pages collectively. I realised how old they actually were. I also realised, the facts now hitting me harshly, that I would never grow old with them. They would surely make their way to death without my aging too. The two of them looked happy in this scene, a warm glow around the room creating a blithe surrounding. I made me way back to Sofia, who was happily wondering the gardens. She turned to me and smiled; a fairy-like state about her.

"Did you go in?" she asked curiously. I tried to smile back, but the lump in my throat made it impossible.

"No," I whispered, hugging her close to me. She wrapped her hands around my waist, her head resting on my shoulder.

"It's ok you know. Everything is going to turn out alright. All we need to do is get past these few days and then we will be able to come back without any trouble."

"You make it sound so easy," I sighed. Something moved near the house, and I immediately looked up towards the house and I saw my mother at the window, looking over at me with a pleased face. She waved and started to walk away, and I could only guess she was coming out to see me.

"Oh crap, my mother has seen us." Sofia looked over and then grabbed my hand. We seemed to race towards the house, and this was exactly what I didn't want, but we soon diverted to the side of the house in a flash. We hid by the corner, waiting for my mother to think we weren't actually there and she was going a little crazy. She hobbled down the steps, looking out in to the garden. My father was right behind her, looking a bit disappointed that we weren't there.

"I swear they were there." She chuckled, her hand over her chin. Father just patted her lightly on the shoulder.

"I think you may be going a bit crazy." And they both laughed as they went back inside.

Somehow, we were in France in no time. It seemed a little crazy that we could cross the see without a boat, or any other transport to for that matter. Vampires could do amazing things. We were in Calais, a town in the northern part of France. It seemed old, the stonewashed buildings and the small shops with their items on display in the neatly ordered windows.

"This is where I stop," Damien said, his hands in his pockets, rolling back and forth on his heels. We turned around to him, and under the street lights, he still looked as casual as ever.

"You take care whilst you're away sis." He hugged her, and then he turned to me, his lips opening and then closing again. "Take care." I shook his hand in a formal manner, and he smiled at me, starting to walk back from where we came. This was going to end badly; I could feel it in my gut.


	9. Chapter 9 Oh Italy, Deadly Italy

Italy. If I had been in this place a couple of years back, I would have been thrilled, but now, the name sounded dangerous. It felt like I had come here, only to wait for my death to be served to me however the Queen wanted it. We stopped in a small town for the rest of the night. Sofia pointed out that it would be better if we travelled in the day, as most vampires didn't like to go out in the sunlight if it could be helped. It wasn't as if vampires were incapable of going out in to the sun, as Sofia had explained, but it was that the sun made them weaker, gave them a small headache-like pain that was irritating. Even though this would happen to us, we would be blending in more as fewer vampires would be about. We stopped outside a small barn. Its washed stones looked ancient, and blended in with the Italian scenery. Sofia looked up to a small hole in the roof of the barn, and my gaze quickly followed hers. I could hear the rustle of hay against the floor and the silent breathing of the cattle inside. Sofia started to scale the wall, and I sighed and shrugged my shoulders as I followed her.

"Why can't we just stay at a hotel or a bed and breakfast?" I sighed once more as my white, bony fingers clutched on to the wall.

"Because," Sofia rolled her eyes, "if we go in to a hotel, they'll be able to track us. We can't have a trace to our names. And besides, does a hotel offer free blood?"

I still hadn't got used to the idea of drinking blood. Somewhere in my brain, a human part of me was still there, the part that said it wasn't natural to drink blood. I stared down to the cows below. They were unaware of us as we hung silently from the huge beams that ran across the length of the barn roof. There was about five or six cows, huddled in together. Sofia looked over to me with a childish grin.

"Have you ever tried to bewitch something?"

"Bewitch?" I asked honestly.

"Well, as a vampire, you can charm a living thing in to doing anything you want. It takes years of practice, but once you've mastered it, it is pretty useful." I mused over the idea. It seemed that being a vampire had huge advantages. "I'll show you!" She piped up with excitement as she glided down gracefully towards the cattle. They jumped at her presence, and started to stir. Sofia kept still, looking at them carefully, precociously.

"Shhh, everything is all right. I'm not going to hurt you ... I want you to keep still while I bite in to you ... it's not going to hurt, you won't feel a thing." She cooed to the cows, and they all seemed to settle down, a relaxation building up in the atmosphere. She went for one of the cows, biting in to its furry neck, and I looked away whilst she drank its blood. Her head reared up and she looked over at me, beckoning me down to drink with her. I flung myself down beside her, and she continued drinking as I pondered over what to do. Half of me thirsted for the blood inside the animals next to me, but the other half was telling me it was wrong. Of course, I had no option but to drink, or I would starve, but I had to force myself to do it. I went for the nearest cow, delving in to the neck of the animal and tearing in to the flesh. The blood seeped out in to my mouth, and I closed my eyes as the blood washed over me. Its taste was exciting, unlike anything I had tasted as a human, and I closed my eyes, trying not to think about the poor animal that was at my hands.

Suddenly I heard a bang, a door hitting against a wall and I froze. I turned around slowly to see an old woman standing in a floral dressing gown and wellingtons with a gun in her hand. It pointed at me especially, as if she had failed to see Sofia, who was now looking over to me in a cautious way. Her eyes went wide, her head nodding towards the woman as if she was trying to tell me something.

"Che continua qui? Che fa lei con il mio bestiame?" I couldn't tell what the woman was saying, but I could tell she was about to figure out what we were. I figured I'd try bewitching her, seeing as it was my only option. I looked her in the eyes, putting my hands out in front of me as I stepped forward. The woman started to gaze at me, her whole body loosening up, relaxing.

"Everything is going to be alright. I'm not going to hurt you. Everything is going to be alright." I was being serious, concentrating on keeping her glare on my eyes. Her eyes seemed to glisten slightly, and I hoped it was working. "You need to go back inside and go to sleep. You're going to forget this ever happened and especially forget us. Understand?" She nodded slightly, and I realised I was tense, and relaxed my body too. That was when I heard the gunshot. It was the woman, and she had shot me.

It echoed a bit, bouncing of the ancient barn walls, radiating through me. The pain expanded throughout my body, wriggling in to every nerve I had. Although it wasn't an immense amount of pain, as it would have been on a human, it still hurt to a certain extent. It seemed to paralyze my body, and I winced as I dropped to the floor. Sofia watched me fall, and I could tell, although her face remained emotionless, that she was angry. She quickly looked up to the old woman, giving her an evil glare. The woman was starting to point the gun at Sofia, but before she could, Sofia ran up to her and broke her neck in a quick, jolting action. I had never seen Sofia this way before, her eyes intense and her body shaking with anger. The woman died instantly and she dropped to the floor in a floppy motion, like a tree swaying. Sofia rushed over to me, looking me in the eyes for a second, and then running her eyes down to the wound. I looked down as well, and I saw my blood, vampire blood, seeping in to my dark t-shirt. Sofia instantly gouged out the bullet with her teeth, and I found that after that, the wound healed in a matter of seconds, the skin patching itself together.

"You are supposed to charm her, not make her want to shoot you," she whispered lightly, and then she added, "It takes time." I got up and brushed myself off, taking off my t-shirt and replacing it with one from my backpack. We started to cross fields and roads as quickly as the sun rose. Its gentle beam of light shining on me made my skin glow, a dim white glow. The clouds disappeared from the sky, and I could tell by the rising heat that it would be a nice day.

I wasn't even sure where we were going. Sofia hadn't said much along the way, and I was starting to get partially annoyed because of the secrecy, but at the same time I knew I had to accept it because she would know where to go. We seemed to be heading towards a city, its roads now coming in to view. I wondered how old the city was, its building sitting high and graciously on the mountain side, the sun showing dazzling smiles. I could tell the streets were starting to liven up as I could hear voices beginning to break the long silence I had endured. The fields surrounding the city were also beautiful, the light wind blowing the wheat as though showing off to anyone who would watch. We started to slow down, starting to walk on the main road, cars passing us now and again. Sofia walked at a slightly faster pace, either avoiding me because of my near death, or simply because she walked fast. After all she had been a vampire for years, and Sofia must of accustomed to the fast pace. There was a row of cherry blossoms lining the road as we entered the city, their petals scattered all over the place. It was really quite peaceful, but my situation oversaw any enjoyment I had of this trip.

We seemed to pass by people on the street easily, and we blended in as tourists in Italy, although we didn't have our cameras. The streets were busy, people dashing back and forth to catch the local market, looking for some fresh fruit and vegetables or to simply browse for something enjoyable. I felt a pair of eyes on us as we continued our way up a steep sidewalk heading towards an alleyway. Grasping Sofia's arm I quickened my pace and Sofia turned towards me with a confused and apprehensive look upon her face.

"What is going on Liam?" she almost shouted to me. I motioned my finger towards my lips, telling her to be quiet, and she responded by opening her mouth slightly, but then closing it shortly after and looking around suspiciously at everyone we past. I took her quickly to the alleyway out of view of others. It was shadowed by the tall walls of the buildings on either side, and I slowed down to explain to Sofia.

"Someone is watching us," I whispered lightly, keeping my look straight ahead to make it look as if I were not worried at all. Sofia almost turned around, but I quickly squeezed her hand and she instantly turned back around to face the other end of the alleyway.

"Who is it? I can't sense anyone," she sounded more surprised than concerned, but I ignored that for the time being.

"Well I can, and they are still looking at us. Oh wait," I paused for a minute, holding my position in the alleyway as to search the area with my mind. "They've gone."

"Not quite," said a voice as someone walked out from the corner of the alley. It was a man, tall and dark hair cropped in to a fashionable style. His voice was quite formal, posh, but definitely English. He looked serious, wearing jeans and a dark t-shirt with a leather jacket on top. He reminded me of Damien, but except the voice.

"Who are you?" Asked Sofia, but he didn't answer straight away. Instead he took her hand and kissed it lightly, making me a bit angry.

"Who are you?" I repeated Sofia's question.

"I cannot believe you don't remember me Sofia. After all I am the one who turned you." He gave a sharp, but quiet laugh and I felt Sofia clutch on to me, as if someone had just stabbed her. I remembered the story that Sofia had told me, of how she had turned. She went through pain, and she had never wished any of it to happen, and I felt sorry for her, as she had to stand there in front of the man, no, vampire who turned her, ruining a chance of a normal life where diseases and a blow to the head could kill her. I rushed up to the vampire, holding him by the throat against the wall, seething with anger. He simply laughed.

"We do not want to cause a scene do we? The King's minions will be about somewhere." He grabbed my hand and pushed it away, in turn grabbing my throat and pinning me to the ground.

"I am a hundred and fifty eight years older than you. You should respect me, because I can and will do very harmful things to you. Do you understand?" I nodded the best I could, as his hands grew tighter around my neck. He released me all of a sudden and I quickly got back beside Sofia.

"What's your name?" I asked, calming done enough to be civilised.

"My name is Ashford."

"What are you doing here Ashford?" Sofia piped in softly, not looking at him, but looking towards the ground. He didn't answer, leaving a long pause between us.

"I am here to destroy you. The Queen sent me." Sofia gasped and glanced at him, looking disgusted with him, and then looking over at me. "She is coming for you. She is probably making her way through France as we speak."

"So why don't you just get it over with now, I mean that is what you wanted to do in the first place anyway wasn't it? Did you not want to kill me?" She said all this sharply. But he didn't respond in the way I thought he would. Instead he lowered his voice, and took a step closer to us.

"I'll give you time to run. After that you will become my enemy and I will not stop to even think about killing you is that understood?" Sofia and I both nodded in response. "Good. Now, go and hide, because your lives may be over shortly." He quickly disappeared in to the crowd, blending in with regular humans. Without speaking, Sofia and I continued our journey to another hideout, where we would sit and wait.

Another barn, this time empty and cold. I sat on a bale of hay as Sofia paced back and forth. I bit my lip, trying to occupy my time, holding back the urge to just run to the Queen and beg to kill me herself. I didn't want to end my life, but if running away from everything, everyone all the time was what my life was going to be about, then what would be the point of living it?

"Maybe we should just give in. Maybe she will have mercy on us?" Sofia laughed a sarcastic laugh and stopped to look over at me.

"The Queen does not do mercy." I should have known that answer before Sofia had said it. Did I really have a choice in any of this? Was my fate already decided? I guessed so as I couldn't fix things now. I was too late.

"I think we should give up." Sofia stopped once more to fix her gaze on me. She narrowed her eyes, looking straight in to mine.

"Why would you even say that?" She asked whilst shaking her head slightly.

"Because I don't want to run anymore. I am sick and tired of running away. We can go to the King and he will be able to contact the Queen surely-"

"Do you not love me?" I could see her face sadden and I rushed up to her, embracing her in my arms and kissing her head. I swore I could feel her weep in my arms, but yet, that must have been impossible, so I ignored it and just hugged her tighter.

"Of course I love you. If there was anyone who could love someone more than anything they ever wanted, that person would be me." I took in a deep breath before what I was about to suggest, because it was hard for me to admit this was really happening. "And because I love you, I'm going by myself to face the Queen. That way if she does decide to kill me, then it means you don't have to be there when I, die," I choked out the words, and swallowed the developing lump rising in my throat. She ducked out from under my arms, giving me a daring glare and a shaking hand.

"No, I can't leave you. I'm _not_ leaving you. She'll destroy you, crush you without me." I looked to the ground, not taking my chances to make eye contact with her.

"I thought you might do this. I can't keep you behind myself, so I asked Damien to come and stop you from following me." Damien appeared at the door, looking more serious than I had ever seen him before. He didn't even smile, crack a joke or ruffle someone's hair. He just stood there, holding his hands and looking towards the ground.

"Seriously?" Sofia spat at me. "You asked him of all people," she turned to Damien, "How could you do this, you're my brother!" she just sat down, holding her head in her hands. I could feel the tension in the atmosphere.

"Goodbye Sofia," I said as I walked past Damien, who let me through willingly. I slowed down, waiting to hear some yelling of my name, Sofia being restrained by Damien, but to my relief there was nothing. No cries to make me feel even more saddened about what was to come.


	10. Chapter 10 The King, Queen And I

I made my way further through the city. The day was drawing to a close and I could feel the heat beginning to disappear. I knew the King's mansion was in the city, so I decided he would let the Queen know where I was. As I finished my walk up the hill, the mansion came in to sight now, and I could tell it was his because of the two, large vampire guards on either side of the gate. They watched me suspiciously as I ventured up to them, and I didn't realise how big the men actually were, standing over me as I stood there. They looked the same, maybe twins? I looked around for a second, just to make sure I was in the right place. It seemed expensive enough, and the guards were a dead giveaway.

"I'm here to see the King," I stuttered whilst swallowing hard in between. They peered over their dark sunglasses and then glanced at each other.

"Name please," the one on the right said, and I felt so nervous I almost forgot my name.

"Liam Carter." They immediately looked shocked, and took action, grabbing my wrists and suppressing me so I could not move. I collapsed to the ground, my knees hitting hard on the stoned pavement below me. They were too strong for me, and I didn't try to resist. They obviously knew who I was, and it was obvious that I was going to meet the King on bad terms.

They took me inside the mansion, through the entrance of the large wooden doors. There was a long hallway that was lit brightly; lights dotted every few steps on the ceiling. There was also as many doors as there was lights. Plain, wooden doors were placed in constant rows on either side of the hallway, leading down to a bigger wooden door at the far end. As we walked nearer, one of the guards still was restraining me whilst the other walked casually beside us, keeping his glare straight ahead of him. The doors opened; most likely someone was on the other side, and we entered in to the large room that was concealed on the other side.

It was bright just like the hallway. Everything was white, or a light cream colour in the room. The floors and walls were the same colour, so the room was an endless white box. The guard who was by me forced me down on my knees; I heard a sharp bang as he did so. The other guard stepped aside to the side of the room, saying something in to his radio that I couldn't make out. There was a few steps in front of me, leading up to a large golden chair, which was about the only thing that wasn't white. It sparkled as the light hit it, its frame standing boldly and proudly on top of the steps. I could see a graceful man step out from behind it, acknowledging me before he sat down. He wore gold robes that draped over the bottom of the chair, and his hair was a silver colour, flowing over his shoulders. He looked old, creases appearing in his forehead as he moved. Everyone bowed to him as he sat, and I was forced to bow, even though I would have done so anyway if I had been given the chance. This was definitely the King.

"King Lucio, we have before you Liam Carter. He had come to the front gate, asking to be in your presence." This came from the guard beside me, who backed away from me when King Lucio shook a hand to tell him to move away from me. He rubbed his chin for a moment before speaking.

"So you are the Liam that Mary-Anne has been looking for?" he asked me with a surprised face. I looked around before nodding slightly. He continued, "Why did you come here may I ask?" I contemplated on wither to speak or not. I had hoped if I didn't speak, he might get angry and kill me there and then, but as I stayed silent he raised his eyebrows, patiently waiting for an answer.

"I have no intention of running anymore. I simply came here to die. I know you would know where Queen Mary-Anne is, and you'd be able to contact her and tell her you had me." He was slightly amused by this as he laughed slightly, rubbing his hands together slowly.

"You wish to die?" he asked curiously.

"No, I do not _wish _to die, but I do not _wish _to run away for the rest of my life either." He mused over that, running a hand through his thick hair.

"You seem to be wise. Queen Mary-Anne is on her way as we speak. She will be here soon. In the time being you will remain here. Now if you excuse me, I have something to tend to." He gave a small smile towards me and then got up and left through the dark opening behind his thrown. His robes flowed behind him and he was gone. I sighed, and looked around.

Most of the other vampires stayed in the room, except for a few who stayed close to King Lucio, which I guessed must have been his personals bodyguard. There were two small teenage vampires that I thought I recognised; who walked in to the room casually and stood beside the king's thrown. A girl and a boy that looked about the same age and suddenly my memory flashed back to that night in the club.

"Silver and Adrian?" I gasped in surprise. They looked over to me and hissed, but another vampire looked over them and they calmed down immediately.

"So, we meet again. You look less human and more vampire," Adrian spoke with a clear crisp voice that rang out.

"I am a vampire. I'm here to ..." I didn't know how to finish that sentence, but they understood me, as I heard them laugh a little bit, smirking at each other. I guessed they would of rather have me dead than be a vampire.

"What are you two doing here? Where is Eric?"

"Eric is dead. We decided to work for King Lucio, to pay of our debts to society. He said we could come in handy, having special powers." I remembered Silver hurting me with her mind, but I was still to discover Adrian's power. I looked down to my feet and twiddled my thumbs whilst I sat there.

It felt like I had waited forever. Everyone just stood still, not making much conversation except the occasional whisper. I felt the silence grow when Queen Mary-Anne walked in. She came from the large doors opposite the thrown from which I had came from, and she walked in forcefully, her hips swaying slightly whilst she walked. There were two bodyguards beside her, one on each side. She wore a red dress, and it flowed behind her in a similar way to the King's robes. She had a mousy brown colour in her hair, and her face didn't show one wrinkle, her jaw line carved to perfection. She walked up to me and flicked her fingers towards me. Her bodyguards came to either side of me and picked me up forcefully. They constricted their arms tightly around mine.

"I've been looking for you," she said in a serine voice. I decided to look her right in the eyes, but was suddenly afraid of what I saw. You could tell she was full of anger, manipulation and discipline. Her eyes told you all that by just one look. They shone a ruby red and they burned my vision. I looked down to the floor and blinked once or twice. "I see you're no longer a human?"

"Yes. Sofia turned me. We were attacked by Eric who forced Sofia to turn me."

"You were attacked?" She turned to Adrian and Silver, who looked over to me nastily.

"Your highness, we were under slavery. We had to be loyal to him until he was dead." Mary-Anne forgot me for a minute and walked up to them.

"Do you remember what I can do to you? Do you want to die like Eric?" She bared her teeth at them and hissed violently. The two teenage vampires jumped slightly and stepped an inch backwards. I had never seen vampires so scared before, in fact I had never seen any vampire afraid of something before. But now I saw these two children, who now looked their age rather than mature adults, they looked frightened. She gave one more hiss before turning towards me, with the same angry look as before.

"Well Liam I have decisions to make. Someone has to die for this act, and seeing as Eric is already dead, it cannot be him who takes the penalty. Therefore, I propose that you may take the penalty, or ..." She paused and gave a small grin. I was horrified at the look she gave.

"Or what?" I asked to confirm my worst fears.

"Or you can save yourself, and in place of you Sofia can die." I gasped a bit and slumped back under the strain of the guards arms.

"Why would I even consider that?" I spat with anger after a long wait.

"Because she turned you. You must have felt some anger at her. Why would you even want her to live? She stopped you from having any normal life. She stopped you from loving any human again, because you wouldn't be able to resist the blood pulsing through their veins. She was selfish." She was manipulating me, making me want to keep my own life over Sofia's.

"No. I will never wish for her to die." Mary-Anne just smiled, the corners of her mouth turned up.

"Suit yourself. Well, it's sorted. You will die." She reached out towards me, her finger pointing out towards me. I wondered if her power was killing people with a touch of the finger, but I didn't have much time to think, because I was about to die. Just as her finger was an inch away from my forehead, someone crashed through the door.

"No! Liam!" She shouted as Mary-Anne's finger ventured nearer to me.

Sofia looked over at me, sadness welling up in her eyes. Damien was behind her, looking frantic and worried, something I hadn't seen in him before. I felt like it was too late, as Mary-Anne's touch was so near to me. I closed my eyes but nothing happened. The Queen had stopped, turning around to face Sofia and Damien.

"Ah, the Smith's here to save the day again. How loyal of you, but you are too late, Liam has chose his fate." Sofia looked away, crowding in to Damien's arms as the Queen continued to my death. I didn't know how it was to die. I thought everything was going to be alright, because in reality it was. Sofia would be alright, as she would be safe with her family. I would be missed by some, but they would soon forget me. I felt a flash of something then. Right before Mary-Anne was about to touch me, I saw something in the back of my mind. It was right where we were now, in the large white room. Mary-Anne was touching my forehead, and I flopped dead in the arms of the guards. She laughed manically as my lifeless body hung there. She was distracted and, as she concentrated on me, Silver and Adrian ran up to her, tearing in to her. They ripped her to pieces in a matter of seconds. And there my mind was back, and I felt the urge to say what I saw.

"Queen, look out!" She looked up and saw the two children launch towards her. The leaped up in to the air, flying through it swiftly. Silver was immediately pushed aside, her back slamming against the marble wall. Adrian looked sharply over to his sister, and grabbed the Queen by her arms. She touched his forehead and he immediately became lifeless in a matter of seconds. He crashed to the floor beneath Mary-Anne's feet in a matter of seconds, and the guards quickly grabbed Silver. Once the commotion settled, everyone looked over to me.

"How did you know?" The Queen asked with open eyes. Even I didn't know how I knew. That vision must have had some explanation.

"I saw it happen in my mind," I said slightly confused. She gasped and then grinned, her hand resting on her chin.

"I do believe you have a power." I tried not to grin, but it was hard not to. Being the newest vampire in the room, and having a gift was an exceptional thing. The Queen started to circle the room, her dress flowing behind her. She was obviously considering my fate now, as you could see it in every crease in her brow. I wasn't too sure what to do, as the Queen came to a stop in front of me. She gave me a quick smile and then flicked her hand upwards as she walked away from me to circle the room once more.

"Queen if I may," Sofia started to speak, and she seemed shy and timid, an unusual state for Sofia, "Liam's powers are too valuable to kill him, if you do, you may be losing a beneficial gift." The Queen stopped and looked over at Sofia suddenly.

"Although your motive is purely self-centred, you are right. Liam, you must join us. We can be unstoppable, you can be great" she came up close and whispered that in my ear. I was a bit shocked at her sudden approach, but I remained still.

"As tempting as that sounds, I want to be with Sofia in my home town. Without her, my life wouldn't be the same." I looked up to her and saw a wide smile on her face, she looked almost happy. But Queen Mary-Anne looked most displeased. She contained her anger though, and she started to walk past the thrown of the King.

"Well, if that is your choice so be it. You may leave. Now if you will excuse me, I have to tell the King where his minion went to. Silver will come with me" Two of the guards dragged the tightly bound Silver behind Mary-Anne and they disappeared behind the throne. There were several other guards left in the room, and I stood up as Sofia ran up to hug me. I embraced her in a tight hug and a kiss. She looked up in to my eyes and I stared back.

"You heard the Queen," one guard seemed to interrupt, "You are free to leave." He seemed eager for us to leave, so Sofia and I went towards the door where Damien was waiting. He gave a smile and looked behind him, checking if there was anyone was out in the hall.

"I guess the Smith's did save the day again," and we laughed, something I hadn't done in a long while.


	11. Chapter 11 I Know What You Are

The Vampire Saga: Midnight Blood

I was happy. We were happy. My life had been saved by my own mind, and it even amused me a little that it had been as simple as to find myself, of who I really was, to save everything I had been living for. We were back home in the mansion of the Smith's. It was warm, and comfortable, and instead of the pouring heat, rain trickled down the windows. I was kind of glad to see the rain, because the sun now just reminded me of that horrible day. We had started to settle back down again, going back to our normal ways. I had to patch things up with a few people explaining where I had gone to. My parents hardly noticed, as I didn't see them very often anyway. Lara was a different story.

Sofia and I walked in to the hotel together. Some people stopped talking; the gossip had built up over the past week. They quickly continued to talk again once they realised I was staring at them. I had now become the town 'weirdo'. Lara was not to be seen, but I saw Lily behind the bar. I walked up to her whilst Sofia went in another direction to talk to Portia.

"Hey Lily!" I greeted her excitingly as I walked up to her and gave her a small hug. We weren't close friends but we were happy around each other.

"Hey Liam. I was wondering when you were coming back," she continued her work as she spoke.

"Where's Riley?" I asked curiously as I searched around for any sign of a dog.

"He's in Lara's office with Lara. She doesn't like him being out front, you know, health hazards and all." I smiled at her and walked through to Lara's office. It was through a small corridor, at which only one person could fit through. There were boxes stacked on either side of the corridor, and as I opened the office door, it opened up to a wide room. Riley was lying on a bed, which I hadn't given to them. Lily or Lara must have bought it for him, and as I walked in he rushed up to me, sniffing me and licking my face. I was glad to see him, as he was actually a close friend. After I had seen him I looked over to Lara whilst continually scratching Riley's head. She wasn't smiling; in fact, she wasn't even looking at me as she concentrated on paperwork in front of her. I felt a bit sad inside that she didn't appear happy.

"You were gone a while," was all she said. I looked down at Riley trying not to make any eye contact.

"I know," was my short reply. "I have no explanation for what I did, and I can't even begin to say how sorry I am," I felt so ashamed of how I just left with no explanation, but telling her I went to Italy to die wasn't exactly I thing I'd say to her. There was a silence between us, but it felt nice to have some peace for once.

"I wasn't sure you were coming back," she said calmly.

"Neither was I. Is my job still here for me?" She was hesitant for a moment, but then she stopped tossing papers about and looked over at me.

"It is. I couldn't let you disappoint your mother by ending up with no job. Even if you were never coming back, your job would always be here for you." I felt so ashamed that I might have doubted Lara, because she never doubted me. I walked over to her and hugged her tightly. Lara was like family to me, and she had been there for me, and I was close to her. She was like a second mother to me.

"I'm sorry I left. I'm going to make it up to you. I promise." I could feel her crying, the wet droplets running down my back. I stood up and backed away, grabbing Riley's lead and putting it on him. "I'm going to take Riley home now. I'll see you first thing tomorrow morning." I started to walk away, and as my hand was on the doorknob, she called to me.

"I know what you are." Those words stopped me dead. I couldn't believe what I had just heard. I froze in the same position, just staring at the door, waiting for her to speak again.

"What?" I asked quietly, not moving.

"I know what you are Liam."

"And what is that?" I asked carefully as my hand started to move away from the door.

"Vampire."

1


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